CLOSURE IN MOSCOW
Outlandish Aussies overcome self-doubt to make show-stopping return.
AS VOCALIST CHRISTOPHER de Cinque delicately puts it, Closure In Moscow’s story went from the clichéd tale of high-school kids jamming to “a fucking whirlwind” in the blink of an eye. Their 2008 debut EP, The Penance And
The Patience, quickly earned the eccentric Australians a record deal with Equal Vision Records. After relocating to the USA, they wrote their LP First Temple on the road amid an exhaustive, and exhausting, touring schedule.
“For a few of us, that was our first time moving out of home,” says de Cinque. “It was not a normal life. We wrote an album and toured the shit out of it, but the more time away from that period of our lives, the more I see it was just this absolute, on a wing and a prayer, ‘clown fiesta’ of a time. I think it affected us all in different ways; it was the best and the worst time.”
Craving a slice of normality, the band returned home where a more grounded setting helped them write the outrageously adventurous Pink Lemonade, and it rapidly became something of a cult classic. Suffice to say, the nine intervening years between its release and its longawaited follow-up, Soft Hell, have been fractious for the band.
“‘Should’ is a dirty word, but I think there should be a few more albums under our belt at this point,” the singer admits. “If I can be real about it, a lot of it taking so long does come down to self-doubt and crippling anxiety. It’s hard to be productive when you pile so much expectation in your own mind. But I learnt that waiting for inspiration or waiting until you feel better is a mug’s game: self-doubt, fear and anxiety will always be lurking there.”
On a foundation of fragile mental health came more touring, pandemics and, for some members, the life-changing effects of parenthood. But despite the tumult, the band remained dogged.
“The fire in everyone’s belly never fully extinguished. There was still this burning ember for everyone to give enough of a fuck about the album to put their blood, sweat and tears into it and to go on this maddening chase down a rabbit hole to make the record as good as it can be. I think, as songwriters, it needed that extra time to come together in a way that it couldn’t before.”
As the Chinese proverb of the man who lost his horse tells us, sometimes we have to endure hardship before things get better. For Closure In Moscow, Soft Hell is a living, breathing example of that. They’ve found brevity and accessibility in among their delectable and charming chaos. Their latest songs are impeccably detailed, bending into wild, contorted shapes that belie expectation while always remaining laser-focused and wildly entertaining. Patience is bitter, but its fruit is far sweeter. Now, as de Cinque says, another album in a few years time would be the “ultimate indication” that Closure In Moscow are back, and they’re back for good.
”WAITING FOR INSPIRATION IS A MUG’S GAME: SELF-DOUBT AND ANXIETY WILL ALWAYS BE LURKING.”