Cloakroom Q Release Genre Bending New Single (Irish Art Rock)
In a music industry that has become saturated by those scrambling for attention by jumping on the new hot TikTok trend, Cloakroom Q fly their freak flag boldly in the face of this smothering paradigm. Truly a singular voice, they remain true to themselves as they take influences from jazz and folk by way of Daft Punk and anime metal, to give us something truly original. This is non more evident than on the art-rock single ‘Nail In Your Head’. A three-and-a-half-minute track that leaves no stone unturned during their exploration of ideas, as they veer and sway between lounge act and heavy metal apocalypse. It’s the sound of the band that plays at the Overlook Hotel as Jack Nicholson gets served by the best bar man from the netherworld. Mike Patton’s favourite band he’s yet to hear.
“Pleasingly hard to pigeonhole art rock tour de force”
-Hot Press-
Cloakroom Q formed eight years ago, taking their name from a brawl that erupted in the queue for the cloakroom during a Death Grips show. Comprised of Jared Green on vocals/guitar/keys, Con Coulter on Guitar, Dan Monaghan on bass/trumpet and Danny Havern on Drums. The band have been steadily releasing music over their life span, including album ‘Yes, Again’ and single ‘Leave Me At Lusk’ through the Oh Yeah Centres prestigious ‘Scratch my Progress’ program.
“Frequently imbued with a sense that anything can happen”
– Chordblossom –
The band return with new single ‘Nail In Your Head’ that further expands on their art-rock sonic palette. The initial salvo of stabs that open the track, straight away give to a sea-sick rhythm that’s anchored by Dan’s gnarly overdriven bass. Then just as you’re finding your sea legs, the band drop down into smokey lounge act territory as Jared intones ‘Smile, you clown, nail in the back of your head, maybe that’s the reason you’ve been avoiding your bed’. Imbued with a disturbing calm menace and punctuated by dissonant guitars the delivery ramps up the sense of disquiet in the track. The syncopation of the vocals, bass and guitars mean that the melody stays with you long after the track ends. Danny’s drums move from disco to metal to jazz over the course of the track adding a palpitating heartbeat to the unravelling. Midway through the band open up, xylophone rises up out the mix amidst the wailing guitars of Con and Jared. All before the band hit full longue act, wood block included but short of clicking your fingers and jazz hands. As we hurtle towards the end all manner of sonic psychosis is unveiled but all based around the melody that repeats throughout the song, burrowing deeper and deeper into your psyche with each pass. Lyrically Jared says the song addresses those in your life that consistently fall short but refuse to change.
The track was written while the band lived together over lockdown, with Danny and Jared working together on lyrics which the band say is a rarity in their witing process. Jared’s approach to melody is to, in their own words, gravitate towards the ‘spiciest’ note in the chord and build it from there. This approach helps create the unique Cloakroom Q sound.
Recorded at Analogue Catalogue, a residential studio in Raithfriland, by Darragh Tibbs. The band say that the isolation the studio affords allowed them to focus, without distraction, on crafting ‘Nail in the Head’. A track they say is an indicator of more material to come ‘dissonant harmonies, aggressive lyrics and harsh noise..mixed with some Queen style layered vocals’