No Carrier is an intriguing noir-electric-synth-based-gothic-pop band (yes I just made that genre up, but it’s the hip thing to do these days, so I am going with it) with some deep and dark focus to their music. To be fair, all of those things apply to a certain degree when concerning No Carrier, but they have their own sound and forcing them in to a specific genre simply isn’t easy to do.
Chris Wirsig, who is credited for keyboards, production and vocals, along with the haunting and beautiful vocals provided by the talented Cynthia Wechselberger, have enlisted a few other smart additions to the projects sound as well. Kalib DuArte masterfully covers the vocals on The Boys Of Summer by Don Henley, while Melissa Harding offers up her slick voice on the inspired cover of Belinda Carlisle’s California, and Lauralee Brown provides the smoky and low vocals on the almost Depeche Mode sound of a Room With A View by Tony Carey.
As a long-time fan of the band Dead Can Dance, I was truly pleased to hear what is my favorite song on the album, She Moved Through The Fair, which an Irish traditional song that Cynthia knocks out of the park with her haunting and controlled vocals. I myself would love to see an entire album dedicated to exploring this song’s sound and where the band would inevitably take it (I hope they read that last line and consider it).
The unique four-song EP itself is aimed at casting a darker shadow on songs that the public considers much lighter in their nature than they actually are, which I respect for the simple honesty of their mission. Being an album made up of songs written by different songwriters it lacks a certain cohesive tone in regards to its sound, which is most likely the real reason it is difficult to place this band in a specific genre. The songs themselves are all safe bets as they already have a large audience of listeners, but you inevitably alienate those fans and lose that safety when you produce them in such a daring way.
No Carrier provided us with an interesting dose of golden age songs on the Ghosts Of The West EP, and if you want something moody, unique and interesting in its delivery, then this is an album you should dive in to when you have the chance. Although it may not break any barriers and you may not understand what genre it is supposed to play inside, No Carrier’s mission to show their diversity has been a successful one.
