REVIEW | MOULD – Hoping as a Coping Mechanism

Label: 5dB Records

By Toby Furlong

MOULD are a post-punk group from Bristol who boast a colossal sound, throwing down the gauntlet by conjuring a fierce live reputation throughout their native Bristol. Live sets more often than not have the sensation of a hand grenade going off in a crowded room, the performer doesn’t pretend to have any distance from the audience and they frequently revel in the chaos together.

The question then becomes, how does a group with such a fierce stage reputation transmute that sound onto a debut LP with a point to prove? ‘Hoping As A Coping Mechanism‘ makes any doubt or apprehension futile, bringing the hurricane sound and urgency of the group straight from the live arena.

The answer is actually with a little help from our friends… recorded in London’s 5dB Studios and produced by Sean Oakley (Georgia, Scaler, Sorry), who flew in from LA especially for the project, ‘Hoping as a Coping Mechanism’ is a strong display of their talents. In their own words, it’s “more focussed, paced and thought-out”, but over 13 tracks that explore the horrors of the outside world and the internal minefield of the brain.

Speaking on the track ‘Lucid‘, vocalist Joe Sherrin revealed; “Suppressing what we want to do or say. The last line is ‘there’s more than life to stability’, which is telling the voice of the rest of the song “life’s short for worrying, worryhead!”.

The frantic bass of Kane Eagle is the conductor, hear it front and centre on ‘Emotive Language‘, a track that displays the groups abilities to fire on all fronts, opting for funked up shake-down fun, closer to something angular and rhythmic rather than a flat-out guitar blowout. This also rings true on ‘Float‘ as the group understand the very best of post-punk can be as unapologetic as it wants but the real power lies in the groove.

If there’s any limitations, and they are few and far between, the album’s second half does begin to drag, sprawling endlessly whereas the first half felt more focused and refined, it’s understandable for a group with such immense energy and clearly the scope and depth of ideas to push themselves far from the much travelled post-punk road. Take the closing track ‘Humm‘ for example, there is some wonderful string accompaniment that deliciously contrasts the vocal barrage of Joe Sherrin.

With plaudits flying in from BBC 6 Music, a seismic live reputation pushing them forward on a wave of sweat and momentum, the group can put their feet up and let the fire-breathing sound of their debut album do all the talking. They are surely going to be on a festival stage or venue near your city soon so don’t turn up initiated, we won’t be over here at CLUNK.