Crystal Cities - 'Shadow of a Doubt'
That the latest single ‘Shadow of a Doubt’ from Australia’s Crystal Cities should be a dark, brooding and frenetic affair should come as little surprise given the story behind it.
’Shadow of a Doubt’ is inspired by an event at Toronto airport, in which singer/guitarist Geoff Rana was denied entry to the US, following an intense interrogation, leaving him separated from his band mates and spending two weeks sofa surfing with anyone who’d put him up.
As such, ‘Shadow of A Doubt’ is a track interested in the darker aspects of both life and human nature. This is something that’s reflected in the brooding intensity of the bass and the haunting nature of the lyricism. Indeed, much like life however, there’s an optimism at play also, understated though it might be.
Rearing its head throughout the chorus, and manifested in the lead guitar, it offsets the track’s inherent darkness subtly, not so much softening, as intensifying the verses, allowing the chorus to really soar.
The third single to be taken from Crystal Cities second record, ‘Shadow of A Doubt’ effortlessly brings to mind earlier singles such as ‘Who’s Gonna Save Us Now’ and ‘I Hear a Cold Wind Calling’, harbouring the same rousing sense of forward motion that drives the track forward towards its conclusion.
This sense of inexorable freneticism coupled with the track’s paradoxical feelings of ominous optimism allow ‘Shadow of A Doubt’ to stand head and shoulders above their contemporaries. Plus, the back story is pretty bloody cool.
Words of Dave Beech