Stepping out from the confines of bass and drums duo Fagash McCann, Mark Holloway has unveiled Goth Fight Cage.
Described in the bio as “…an intensely personal project” which has been recorded “…in practice rooms abusing long suffering amps, whispering vocal ideas in bedrooms at 5am, hiding from the imminent sunlight and using whatever mic he could lay his hands on all while trying not to wake the neighbours…Goth Fight Cage gives Mark the opportunity to explore new sonic territories. With years’ worth of demos and ideas filling the vault it’s finally time to prise open the door…” and see what is on offer.
‘Optimism’ is an up-tempo number that soundtracks a set of lyrics that depict the mundanity of depression and existential dread, delivered in a vocal that sits somewhere between studied cool and studied boredom. Musically, there is more than a hint of Graham Coxon in the riffage (no bad thing, of course) and even Holloway’s delivery of the one-line chorus (designed to be bounced up and down to in bedsits and indie discos) reminds me of Damon Albarn.
Whether Holloway can sustain enough interest over a full LP is a different matter, but ‘Optimism’ is a striking statement of intent.
