Album Review: Cavetown - 'Running With Scissors'
An underrated indie star hailing from the United Kingdom, Cavetown is someone that all of Generation Z knows. Whether it's for his early covers released on YouTube, or his TikTok-viral tracks such as 'Lemon Boy' and 'Boys Will Be Bugs', he has found himself on every phone screen and through every speaker. As his career evolves as the years and the record releases go by, he only finds himself changing and improving his art to bring more of himself and his innermost workings to the mainstream.
Reaching the milestone of his sixth full-length at the age of 27, Cavetown - real name Robin Skinner - is bringing some edge to his trademark lo-fi repertoire. Exploring a wider range of alternative sounds and styles, Running With Scissors is his most emotionally mature release to date, and at the best time of his and his following's lives.
One of the first single releases for the record is 'Rainbow Gal'. A musically vibrant track, one that is rich in layers both within the augmented arrangement and in the modern-life lyrics. Duetting himself with the help of vocal distortion and auto-tune, Skinner speaks of finding safety, warmth and acceptance from a loved one simply by a technological connection. Describing himself as "8-bit, crushed, digital, monotone", it's an up-to-date metaphor for being reminded of a dear soul in one's life through everyday means. Skinner finds himself freed when looking at the titular character, stating "there's nothing else" and "I'm not myself" without their presence; feelings that are still felt around the world from person to person, but rarely expressed in such a smooth yet understandable way. A way that is less old-school but not so new-fangled. It's still a tale as old as time, but edited for modern audiences.
Skinner's standout single 'NPC' is what one may wish to call an instant hit. Possibly a brand new classic. Fusing his gentle vocals with electronic elements under a pop-punk blanket, Skinner uses the calm chaos as he talks about his tendency to not stay in one spot for long and analysing his journeying through life in literal and figurative ways. Inspired by his childhood imaginary friend, he compares how he would see this invisible companion to how he appears in his adult life as a professional musician. It's a calmness of doing what he loves with a chaos that at times feels out of his control. With its catchy sound and deeply profound words, this is a track that will be resonating with his core fanbase: the listeners that have experienced life through similar lenses and can read between the lines of his storytelling lyricism. The listeners that have also found themselves displaced, in more ways than one, throughout their lives for one reason or another. The listeners that feel they run on auto-pilot or someone else is at the helm of their inner-mechanisms.
Cavetown over the years has been a project that bonded people, with the power of art, music, and solidarity. When Skinner presents tracks such as 'NPC', it's just another example of how he can word the lives and times that others may have spent many days, weeks, months or even years trying to verbalise. That ability is power, and Skinner uses this power responsibly.
Running With Scissors is a new update to Skinner's personal life in a bigger, bolder, and occasionally brighter way than ever before. Whether it's exploring familial themes such as the open letter to his brother, 'Micah'; the grunge-tinged mini-anthem of repression in 'Reaper'; or the rebellious dramatic exit that is the title track 'Running With Scissors'. Skinner has poured another cup of life into an album and it's brimming with reality and relatability.
Cavetown will always be a leader for the young, the traumatised, and the ever-growing hopefuls, simply for proving to practice what he preaches and to be on the same level as his very people.
Words by Jo Cosgrove
