Today, Los Angeles-based artist Ruth Radelet releases her debut original single, “Crimes.” After fronting the beloved and influential band Chromatics for over a decade, “Crimes” launches Radelet’s next chapter as a singer, songwriter, and performer. Utilizing the talents of friend and producer Filip Nikolic (Poolside), Radelet’s first solo effort conveys her unmistakable style and distinct voice. “Is it easy to start over?” echoes throughout the dreamy chorus of “Crimes,” capturing a cinematic mood uniquely her own. “‘Crimes’ is about the pursuit of success at the expense of one’s integrity, and the exploitation of others in order to get ahead,” explains Radelet. “It’s about the price we pay for our choices, and whether or not it’s worth it. The question, ‘Is it easy to start over?’ can be interpreted in two ways – it’s meant to ask how it feels to continually reinvent yourself until you lose sight of who you are. It also asks how hard it would be to walk away from it all.”
Radelet is influenced by a diverse catalog of artists, ranging from Joni Mitchell to Frank Ocean. She has been performing and releasing music for over a decade since joining Chromatics in 2006 for their acclaimed album Night Drive released the following year. Chromatics’ music and aesthetic has notably been used in numerous films, television series, and fashion shows. The band appeared on screen in multiple episodes of David Lynch’s Twin Peaks: The Return while Radelet was recently featured on a Chromatics’ 2020 remix of the Weeknd’s #1 hit single, “Blinding Lights.” Following the dissolution of Chromatics last August, Radelet released her incandescent cover of Elliott Smith’s “Twilight” in December for the Kill Rock Stars 30-year anniversary cover series. “Crimes” is the first taste of more original music to come from Radelet later this year.
We’re into the top 20 albums from the year that I heard and reviewed. Let’s do this.
#20 – Blackwater Holylight – Veils of Winter
Blending goth, psychedelia, and doom, Blackwater Holylight crafted one of the coolest and creepiest records of the year. Witches coven vocal harmonies and cosmic horror synths roll along like fog across a moor and draw you into what at first sounds like the end of your mortal coil but turns out to be a pretty neat party.
#19 – Khruangbin – Hasta El Cielo
Khruangbin’s Con Todo El Mundowas already amazing, but then they released this dub version of it, and it’s just as good. It’s richly layered and probably the best chill-out record of 2019.
#18 – Comacozer – Mydriasis
Be sure to check out these guys if you’re a fan of dwarf star matter-heavy stoner metal. Comacozer’s Mydriasis consists of only four tracks, but they add up to enough time for a full album. They take delight in exploring long jams, cosmic highways, and hanging out with ancient gods.
#17 – King Gizzard and the Lizard Wizard – Infest the Rats’ Nest
Speaking of heavy, King Gizzard and the Lizard Wizard decided to release two albums this year. The first was Fishing for Fishies (#26 on this list), and the second was this thrash metal album. Like “Fishies,” it’s also heavy on environmental themes and even heavier on shredding. They pretty much did it as a lark and it ended up being one of the best metal albums of the year.
#16 – Chromatics – Closer to Gray
Everyone was expecting the long-awaited (and long since destroyed) Dear Tommy, but we got Closer to Grayinstead. It’s pretty much a giallo film soundtrack with plenty of sexy synthwave, Ruth Radelet’s haunting vocals, and a stunning cover of “The Sounds of Silence.”
The top 15 are coming up later today. Stick around!
#20 – Reverend Horton Heat – House of Blues – Chicago, IL – November 28th
I hadn’t seen Reverend Horton Heat in years. He had a new drummer and added a pianist since I’d last seen him. This was a fun “Holiday Hayride” show that included Christmas tunes as well as plenty of his hits and a guest set by Dave Alvin.
#19 – Chromatics – Park West – Chicago, IL – May 31th
I knew this show was going to be a sell-out as soon as it was announced, but I still managed to score tickets. Despite me almost having to drag a drunk jerk out of the crowd after he punched someone, this turned out to be well worth the trip and ticket price because Chromatics delivered a beautiful set of shoegaze and synth wave that had everyone fawning over them.
#18 – Dave Alvin – House of Blues – Chicago, IL – November 28th
A set within a set, Dave Alvin played a half-hour set with the Reverend Horton Heat as his backing band during the “Holiday Hayride” show. Mr. Alvin put on a clinic in outlaw country and country-punk, absolutely shredding multiple guitar solos that even had Jim Heath grinning in amazement.
#17 – Acid King – Levitation Austin – November 09th
Stoner rock veterans / icons Acid King closed the outdoor stage during the RidingEasy Records showcase at Levitation Austin this year. It was a great, heavy set that showed they hadn’t lost anything and could still wallop you like a force of nature.
#16 – Here Lies Man – Levitation Austin – November 09th
Playing that same showcase earlier in the day wasHere Lies Man, who brought a solid groove throughout the entire set that was as funky and heavy as I’d hoped it would be.
Who cracks the top 15? Come back later today to find out!
When Chromaticsannounced a new album was due this year or perhaps early next year, everyone assumed it would be the long-awaited and remade (after being famously destroyed by frontman Johnny Jewel) Dear Tommy. What came instead is the lovely, mysterious, giallo film-inspired Closer to Grey.
The album opens with a stunning rendition of Simon & Garfunkel‘s The Sound of Silence.” Ageless lead singer Ruth Radelet nearly whispers the lyrics and the sparse instrumentation along with her beautiful voice creates a haunting atmosphere that immediately changes the energy around you. Jewel’s keyboards and synth beats on “You’re No Good” bring in some house music touches to lovely effects as Radelet sings, “I know you’re no good, no, but I can’t stay away from you.” I’m sure this was remixed by thousands of DJ’s not long after the album was released.
The title track brings in electro shine and Nat Walker‘s bright guitar licks. The synths on “Twist the Knife” are sharp and stabbing, as benefits the title, and then the heavy synth bass kicks in as Radelet sings, “You can teach me to be cruel, like the way they tortured you. It’s all right.” “Light as a Feather” has a neat dusty, warped record sound to it as Radelet sings about hearing a voice that “sings whispers from the dead.”
“I can rest again, now that the sky is gray. It hasn’t rained here since May,” Radelet sings at the beginning of “Move a Mountain” – a song about loneliness, the kind of which Chromatics do so well. “Touch Red” is another haunting song about awakening the senses (“The world needs color.”). Walker’s guitar work on the instrumental “Through the Looking Glass” reminds me of Love and Rockets tracks.
“Whispers in the Hall” brings us back into giallo territory, with its slasher horror synths and lyrics centered around a woman in peril finding the will to fight (“Little girl the world just wants to trick you. Can’t you see the look in their eyes? Don’t you know the pain will make you stronger? You don’t have to buy into their lies.”). “On the Wall” is the longest song on the album, clocking in at about eight-and-a-half minutes. It has a cool rock vibe throughout it, bringing to mind 1960’s psychedelia and krautrock synth beats.
“Love Theme from Closer to Gray” is the theme to the giallo thriller Johnny Jewel has probably written and is on his way to producing by now. If not, I wish he would because the song drips with foggy atmosphere, hidden menace, and breathy, hot sex. The closer, “Wishing Well,” is not a cover of Terence Trent D’Arby‘s hit (although that would be amazing to hear from Chromatics), but rather a song about unfulfilled desires (“It’s a quiet night in a nowhere town, where the arcade still glows when no one’s around.”) and longing for something beyond our borders – physical and metaphysical. A ticking clock in the middle of it tells us that time is short. We’d better get to work fulfilling our dreams.
Closer to Gray is a welcome addition to not only Chromatics’ catalogue, but also to 2019. It wasn’t a massive surprise when they released it (They were on tour, after all.), but it was a much-needed jolt after a year of anger and self-isolation. It reminds us to embrace our dreams, and each other.
And by the way, Closer to Gray is available for download through the band’s label’s site (Italians Do It Better) for one dollar.
I wasn’t sure I’d ever get to see Chromatics. I’d read the stories about how band leader Johnny Jewel had destroyed all physical copies of their next album, Dear Tommy, following a near-death experience in 2015. I thought, “Well, it was good while it lasted.” I later learned, however, that Jewel and company had re-recorded the album with additional songs added onto the original material. So I thought, “Well, maybe there’s hope yet.”
It turns out I was right because Chromatics announced a summer tour last year and I was able to snag tickets to see them at Chicago’s Park West before they sold out. It would be Chromatics’ first show in Chicago in six years and they were bringing their Italians Do It Better label mates Desire and In Mirrors with them.
After going through a four-stage security check more extensive than one conducted by the TSA, we were inside and facing the IDIB merchandise table that was practically set up like a flea market with its large neon sign, tables of LPs, and racks of T-shirts. I snagged a big tour poster for just five bucks.
In Mirrors started the show with a set of goth wave music that combined heavy synths with near-spoken word poetry and excellent fashion. Each band member looked like they just walked out of a cool men’s clothing store. They also revealed it was Johnny Jewel’s birthday that evening and thanked him for his extensive contribution to their music.
In Mirrors
Mr. Jewel came out next with his other band, Desire (fronted by his wife, Megan Louise, no less), who put on a nice set of shoegaze / synth wave (“Shoe wave?” “Synth gaze?”) that included a lot of songs about love, nights in the city, and, of course, desire. Megan Louise tossed out red roses to the crowd (particularly anyone on a first date) and led everyone in singing happy birthday to Mr. Jewel.
Desire
Everyone was buzzing hard for Chromatics by this point, and they came out to a neat electro start with a wild video show highlighting time moving in different directions. It was indicative of their music – retro and futuristic.
Chromatics
They started with their classic, “Lady,” but stopped the set afterward so Jewel could address a man in the crowd with, “Hey, man, are you okay?” I thought maybe someone was so drunk they could barely stand or perhaps ill or even overcome with emotion from seeing them live, but it quickly became apparent that the guy was drunk AND being a jackass – to put it mildly.
Jewel told him to calm down, not be a dick, and let everyone do their own thing. This is where the security personnel at Park West began to fail. No one showed up to check this guy out or escort him away from the front of the stage. The guy took offense to someone in the crowd during the next song, “Kill for Love,” and slugged somebody. The band called for security, telling them someone had just been punched, and finally one lone bouncer showed up who was at least sixty pounds heavier and thirty years older than the drunk jerk. The drunk struggled with him for a moment, pushing him away and “arm wrestling” with him.
I handed my tour poster to my wife and was three steps away from putting the guy in a rear choke hold and dragging him to the nearest exit. I’m not kidding. I was advancing on this guy and he had no idea I was behind him. I don’t write this to brag. I write this to highlight the lack of Park West security involved in this situation. I, a music blogger who also happens to be a police detective, was going to have to step in and help this lone bouncer because he had no back-up against a young, fit, and angry drunk who was actively resisting him. Luckily, he told the bouncer he’d walk out on his own and then left before I needed to grab him and before he and bouncer had a slugfest in the middle of the crowd.
Park West failed the sold-out crowd and Chromatics for not having security at the front of the stage as soon as Jewel called out the drunk. They should’ve been there before Jewel stopped talking. Instead, they weren’t and someone got hit by this dude. That’s a potential lawsuit, and it would’ve been one if someone had been seriously injured or worse.
Chromatics, and the crowd, sprung back with positive energy once the “one bad apple” (as Jewel called him) was gone. They played “Night Drive / Paradise” and “Back from the Grave” and I was happy to hear one of their newest singles, “Time Rider,” live for the first time. It didn’t disappoint.
They were enjoying their return to Chicago by the time they reached classics like “Cherry” and “I Want Your Love.” They closed the first set with their stunning cover of Neil Young‘s “Hey Hey, My My.”
Lead singer Ruth Radelet (who might be a vampire as she doesn’t appear to have aged in the last ten years) came out for the encore and delivered her beautiful rendition of Springsteen‘s “I’m on Fire,” which is more emotive in a live setting than you can imagine.
Ruth Radelet was on fire at Park West, and in all our hearts.
They ended the night with “Shadow” and their cover of Kate Bush‘s “Running Up that Hill.” Radelet and Jewel thanked everyone for a good night, with Jewel thanking everyone for overcoming the bad energy at the start of the show. It was a good return for them.
Two people behind me were yelling, “Dear Tommy when?” as he walked offstage. I thought, “That’s only for he to know and us to find out.” You can’t always rush art, and the first couple singles we’ve heard this year promise good things to come.
Keep your mind open.
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Dream pop / shoegaze maestros Chromatics have released a new single, “I Can Never Be Myself When You’re Around,” from their long-awaited new album Dear Tommy.
The new single is another fine example of their ethereal sound and a further tease for the Dear Tommy album that was announced two years ago.
