I often find myself drawn to certain songs because of the mood that they create. Cigarettes After Sex is such a prime example of this in each of their compositions, but particularly in their I. EP. It's a kind of lovesick dreamworld that gives its listeners room to indulge their depressive tendencies and lean into the melancholy. While this may sound psychologically unhelpful, I would argue that its necessary for us to have these kinds of spaces that don't distract us from our feelings, but rather allow us to feel them with a greater level of sincerity, perhaps finding their meaning in the process. The EP opens with my favourite track, Nothing's Gonna Hurt You. It's a promise of protection that simply cannot be kept - and its beauty lies in the sincerity of the moment. The soft, steady bassline is quickly joined by striking percussion and nostalgic synth sounds. This is perhaps the band's best known song, and it's the one whose lyrics linger in my head the longest. It strikes that beloved balance between the mundane and the magical that I've come to look for in music. My favourite lyrics sum this up pretty well:
When we dance in my living room // To that silly 90's R&B // When we laugh into the microphone and sing // With our sunglasses on to our favourite songs // Nothing's gonna hurt you, baby // As long as you're with me you'll be just fine
I'm a Firefighter comes next, a heartbreaking record of letting love go, wrapped up in careful imagery and lethargically whimsical instrumentation. A delicate melody changes hands from electric guitar to delicate zylophone and a guitar steadily drives the song onwards alongside big percussive sounds. It takes it's listeners on a gentle journey of heartbreak, and perhaps inspires them with the beauty that can be found in it. // I need your love inside of mine like I could die //Dreaming of You tells the story of noticing someone from a distance, and the intrigue that ensues. Perhaps bordering on the obsession that can distract us from ourselves, the song speaks of a fixation on an oblivious recipient. The magnetic pull towards someone you don't know intimatel and the bigger idea of humans craving companionship even in their solitude. It's a beautiful haze of big electric guitar sounds and delicate top hat percussion. A generous dose of reverb makes this song a trance-like scene of love and infatuation.Want you yes I do // Bet you never knew it // Think you'd suit me fine // Want you all the timeStarry Eyes closes the album with a delicately whimsical exploration of the magic of attraction and the complications of approaching its object. The song is immersive in its steady, spacious sound, lead by Greg Gonzalez's slow whispery vocal. It's easy listening at its best - melancholy, moody, and just as immersive as you'd like it to be. I first heard the I. EP at a party, and I found myself walking over to the laptop to find out what it was. Cigarettes After Sex's debut album is a lush, warm, roomy EP that's really good at making you feel a whole lot more relaxed than you were a moment earlier.
