They quickly swerve back, yet "Daggers of Light" is a subtle reconfiguration of their past work, grafting the triumphal melodies of their singles to the ornery plod they typically reserve for the deep cuts.
"Silence," or "Mouse Policy," or, really, take your pick—they're all melodic without being cloying, expressive without pandering, true believers in the enduring relevance of Hüsker Dü and the Replacements without devolving into "dudes rock" cliche.
In the past, "ambition" on a Cloud Nothings song meant playing faster, stretching out for seven minutes, or doing both. That doesn't happen on Final Summer. But the spiffier production sharpens the edge rather than dulling it, highlighting subtle flourishes that distinguish the deeper cuts from any random track six from a previous Cloud Nothings album.
"You can make any heaven you want/Why do you blow out every little light/And live in the dark?" Baldi asks on that song, ostensibly to the assorted bigots, fundamentalists, and climate-change de...
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