Following the success of his previous albums and incarnations, James Cook takes a quantum leap into the dark matter of alternative rock with his 5th studio solo album “Inside Out”. Divided into two parts “Inside” and “Out”, the album is a conceptional work of art, that once again showcases the diversity and abstract imagination of Cook. Released on September 22th, 2024, “Inside Out” is an intriguing mix of Darkwave, Shoegaze, Krautrock, Post-Punk, New Wave, Psychobilly, Electronica, Industrial, and Noise-Rock, that slithers and spies down the creaky corridors of its soul asylum. It’s Cook’s most radical and experimental album, which sees his theatrical personas unveil heavier layers, and visit the Unheimlich-lit rooms of Neue Deutsche Welle. Think the Phantasm psyche of Depeche Mode, Nine Inch Nails, Pixies, Throbbing Gristle, Nick Cave, tangled in the cobwebs of Einstürzende Neubauten, whilst residing in the hermetic hamlets of Joy Divison, then you will get a glimpse of its lucid lineage.
Despite its contemporary and original creativity, there is something wonderfully nostalgic about “Inside Out.”, that is a testament to Cook’s skill at tapping into the timeless mechanics of post-punk that loosens the nuts and bolts for further innovation. What could be a long-lost archive from Mute Records, the missing link between British Post-Punk and the New Wave movement prevalent in Germany in the late 70s, opens up an infinite world of electro-guitar experimentation.
It’s a multi-faceted album, that goes back to the basics and complexities of the underground movement of post-punk, reconnecting with the DIY ethos of non-commercial rock. It’s an album that resurrects the lost archives, relics of cold-wave, whilst prowling the tunnels of Industrial rock. Through the all consuming vocals, Cook captures the aesthetics and ambience of a goth-rock, whilst flirting with the villainous alter-egos of darkwave. Along with eerie echoes, intriguing lyrics, and overlapping vocals, “Inside Out”, evokes a sense of esoteric mysticism that unlocks the murkiest of manuscripts and encrypted texts from its subconscious underworld. Along with the drowsy dry ice and misty mayhem, “Inside Out” reveals, and conceals its core, offering a backstage tour, as well as opening the trap doors of eerie escapism.
1) Machintro spins like a moth to a flame, flickering from the jittery lights of new wave and shivering from the ghostly quivers of neo-classicism. Along with the spiked strums, industrial clatter and misty murmurs, Machintro, fire-walks barefoot on the embers of post-punk, whilst reconnecting with its ancestors of goth-rock.
2) Atlas Cloud roams the rockabilly skies of Psychobilly likened to The Cramps, whilst colliding with the Nimbostratus of Nick Cave. It’s poetry that peers from the precipitation of post-punk and star-maps from the constellations of spoken word. Through the jangly riffs, nomadic basslines and tepid drums, Atlas Cloud wanders through the misty fog of goth-rock, whilst dimmed by the lights of etherealism.
3) Inspired by the great late novelist Franz Kafka, Kafkaesque offloads a political, existentialistic, and introspective narrative. Intriguing and magnetic Kafkaesque is a hypnotic regression, a confessional chatter, a trance-like state, that transcends its truth like a mystical megaphone, whilst remaining aloof and detached. Along with the drowsy vocals, reverie riffs, and pulsating beats, Kalfkaesque, bypasses the boundaries of post-punk, and creates a shadowy cinematic catharsis.
4) Corridors and Chicanery swaggers from the sidelines of post-punk and stomps on the narrow pathways of Mod-rock. Through the throbbing baseline, pulsating beats and relay vocals, Corridors and Chicanery spins in a whirlwind of neo-psychedelica, whilst sinking into an apparitional abyss of goth-rock.
5) 20 Horses is a majestic track, that rides the rocky road of alternative rock, in a relay race of post-punk. It’s an arcane assault course, that gallops through the misty fog of noise-rock, tugging on the reins of psychobilly, whilst thrashing against the wild beats of industrial rock.
6) What could be the B-side of Joy Divison’s “Decades”, Inside Out is the self-titled album track which epitomised the menacing mayhem that engulfs the whole body of work. It’s a captivating track, a mesmerising march of goth-rock, drifting from the doldrums of darkwave on a dirt track of Industrial-rock. Through the aloof vocals, pounding beats, and deep-set basslines, Inside Out broods in a mood of melancholy, in the aftermath of drone-based Krautrock.
7) The Odyssey is an epic track that revives from shadows of hard rock, and freewheeling from the motions of garage-rock. Through the stern strums, robust bassline, and hallucinogenic howls, The Odyssey is an extended trip down memory lane. It’s a surge of sonic showmanship, dressed up in the Bolan boa of glam rock, whilst preening from the platform shoes of stadium rock.
8) Stockport Syndrome rummages in the recesses of dark electronica and reflects from the prisms of post-punk. It’s a shadow puppet show of isolation, that strolls sedately on the stilts of industrial rock. Think Nine Inch Nails, treading the timelines of alternative rock, walking in the wildness of deep introspection, and held hostage by Trent Reznor, then you can get the idea of its origins.
9) Deus Ex Machina floats in the shadows of post-punk, whilst navigating through the tumultuous tides of darkwave. It’s a captivating track, that ebbs and flows across an expedition of brooding basslines, spectral strums and delirious drones. Along with the raw vocals and intriguing lyrics, Deus Ex Machina, sails in a sea of sorrow, whilst sinking into a gyre of goth-rock.
10) Wave Hello, Say Goodbye boards a ghostly galleon, sailing the spectral seas of darkwave, whilst navigating through the nebulous mist of new wave. It’s a passing of old haunts, drifting across a shivery shore of cold wave and diving deep into the seabed of industrial rock. Through its chilling commentary, Wave Hello, Say Goodbye adopts a Phantom-Price-Persona, that crosses the border of 80s Thriller and onto the decks of goth-rock. It’s drowned poetry resuscitated, brought back to the sonic stage of post-punk, whilst opening the cabin curtains of tantalising theatrics.