Coma Cinema’s Posthumous Release isn’t a grand departure from previous albums, nor is it a game-changing, genre-creating, undefinable album, the likes have never been heard before. Rather, it is an improvement and polish of accepted ideals of indie pop. By his fourth release, Mat Cothran has established his style of craft, creating music that feels both intellectual and intimate by keeping the production values simple. The sound has always been an exercise in highlighting Cothran’s melodies and unabashedly honest lyrics. Posthumous Release has just received a bit of a touch up. Collaborating with Brad Petering, Jason Wyman, and Rachel Levy, Posthumous Release is given more complexity, with clearer and brighter production. The addition of brass to some tracks, while retaining gritty simplicity in others has the album cycling between Baroque Pop and classic Pacific Coast Indie Rock. And in the forefront are Cothran’s lyrics, raw and earnest, but given a greater sense of highlight and drama.
“VHS White Trash” kicks off the album with a poppy, multi-vocal, guitar strumming track that will inspire slow head-bobbing. “Partners In Crime” is an acoustic guitar track that carries the beauty and melancholy of driving on a grey and rainy day. It seems like the quieter Cothran sings, the more weight his words carry. “She Keeps It Alive” has the heavy-bottomed guitar and throaty grunge vocals reminiscent of Dinosaur Jr. There is an overall closeness tying the record together, even tracks with the largest, most complex sound still have a sense of one-on-one interaction with the artist.
What is obvious is that Cothran stays true to his roots, releasing the album not only through Fork and Spoon Records, but also cassette tape label Orchid Tapes. Posthumous Release is quirky and yet unassuming, simply offering good music, using the heightened production only to subtly improve the sound. The integration of outside elements with tried and true musical style makes this Coma Cinema’s best album yet.
