Cause – La suma de la memoria

In 2015, Cause released their first EP, “A la deriva”, which presented them to the world. Claustrophobic feelings and melodic guitars with fast beats were what this group of four young boys from Santiago, Chile created together. While it still needed to mature a lot, they were surely worth keeping an eye—and an ear, obviously—on. After a 2016 split with the Chilean band Derrocar, they recently put out the short LP “La suma de la memoria”. Let’s see how they have evolved and matured with their sound.

What’s obvious right away is the improvement of the production. Maybe due to the fact they are now closer to the sound they want to reach and the sound they want to represent the band and of course their songs. In general, they still have that Verse vibe that I always felt—something that’s also reflected on the lyrics—but now some melodic arrangements akin to The Effort, Dead Swans, or even Goodtime Boys are to be heard.

All the anger we hear and feel in these songs is also accompanied bu melancholy or sadness, but the lyrics are clearly stating Cause believe in something better and they reject conformity and passivity. Things are bad, but there’s future you can build on your own. Here’s the classic sense of camaraderie that seems somewhat lost in modern hardcore and I appreciate this band still has it.

With all these hints you probably already know how Cause sounds. Rhythmic chords and nice arpeggios, a bass that’s constantly flowing and is not afraid to get melodic, with fast and slow passages in contrast. You know, classic Bridge Nine Records stuff. For me, the lyrics are actually more interesting than the music itself, something that might not be good for non-Spanish speakers. Nevertheless, I encourage anyone who likes these kinds of sounds to give them a listen. It’s worth your time.