In 2021, Montreal band Ought announced they were breaking up — and that former members Tim Darcy and Ben Stidworthy would be reconvening (alongside U.S. Girls/the Weather Station drummer Evan Cartwright) as Cola. The following year, the trio released their debut album Deep in View, and today, they've announced its follow-up, as well as sharing a slate of tour dates and a new single.
The band's sophomore album, The Gloss, arrives June 14 via Next Door Records / Fire Talk Records. Led by new single "Pallor Tricks," it features previously released tracks "Keys Down If You Stay" and "Bitter Melon."
While those two previous releases leaned into Cola's more exploratory, meandering side, "Pallor Tricks" is a return to post-punk form, upping the tempo and sharpening the guitar line into something sawtoothed, following its often white-knuckled lead. Here's what Darcy had to say about it:
The title "Pallor Tricks" is obviously a play on "parlour tricks." The lyrics feature imagery from film sets and such. I suppose I was thinking of the kind of self-consciousness that can arise when a camera is rolling. I've always been particularly affected by the performances I (rarely) see on so-called "reality tv." The type of performance where a person is compelled into a kind of "hyper-real" state where they summon grotesque approximations of emotion that are exaggerated but not elevated, as they are in art. I'm sure there's lots of compelling stuff that goes on in those programs and I don't mean to cast aspersions, this idea of performance simply became a jumping off point when we were writing this one. The song also cycles to a more sincere open chorus, a kind of musical juxtaposition.
Watch the Craig Scheihing-directed "Pallor Tricks" video below, where you'll also find the full album tracklist and the band's tour itinerary — which includes Canadian dates in Toronto (July 5), Montreal (July 20) and Vancouver (October 16).
The Gloss:
1. Tracing Hallmarks
2. Pulling Quotes
3. Pallor Tricks
4. Albatross
5. Down to Size
6. Keys Down If You Stay
7. Reprise
8. Nice Try
9. Bell Wheel
10. Bitter Melon
Cola 2024 Tour Dates:
05/08 Hanover, Germany - Cafe Glocksee
05/09 Rotterdam, Netherlands - Vessell 11
05/10 Eindhoven, Netherlands - Altstadt
05/11 Luxembourg - Out of the Crowd Festival
05/13 Ramsgate, UK - Ramsgate Music Hall
05/14 Birkenhead, UK - Future Yard
05/15 Cardiff, UK - Clwb Ifor Bach
05/17 London, UK - The George Tavern
05/18 London, UK - The George Tavern
07/05 Toronto, ON - The Garrison
07/06 Cleveland, OH - Mahall's
07/07 Detroit, MI - Lager House
07/08 Chicago, IL - Empty Bottle
07/11 Nashville, TN - Third Man Records
07/12 Atlanta, GA - 529
07/13 Asheville, NC - Eulogy
07/15 Washington, D.C. - Songbyrd
07/16 Philadelphia, PA - Johnny Brenda's
07/17 New York, NY - Bowery Ballroom
07/18 Troy, NY - No Fun
07/19 Boston, MA - The Rockwell
07/20 Montreal, QC - Fairmount Theatre
10/10 San Diego, CA - Soda Bar
10/11 Los Angeles, CA - Zebulon
10/12 San Francisco, CA - Bottom of the Hill
10/14 Portland, OR - Mississippi Studios
10/16 Vancouver, BC - Wise Hall
10/17 Seattle, WA - Madame Lou's
