GOLD

Why Aren’t You Laughing? ARTOFFACT

Artful and mercurial misery from the Dutch lowlands

Despite some eminently listenable releases, Gold remain an intriguing enigma. At heart they play surging post-punk with a flair for the gothic, but the more you listen the starker their oddness seems to be. The maudlin, grungy tones recall the low-key brilliance of fellow outliers True Widow and King Woman, while the weary anguish harks back to avant-indie troubadours Come. The frantic, tremolo-picked flourishes, meanwhile, somehow suggest Interpol trying to play black metal. As if this artful clamour weren’t quite enough, vocalist Milena Eva tips effortlessly between desperate intensity and folkish sing-song, sharing tales of anguish and disappointment as she tries to wring a few rare drops of colour from an otherwise monochrome world. ■■■■■■■■■■

FOR FANS OF: True Widow, Arcwelder, Sleater Kinney