Bouncy synthpop powers mark Billy Nomates’ sophomore release from word go. Post-punk stylings are hitting a broader groove, and with the likes of Cacti getting that dance-pop in there, an immediate and fresh change of pace is on the cards. Necessary and exciting, Nomates’ piece here is a weighty beast filled with clear new-wave influences that keeps the British colloquial charm right at the core. Balance Is Gone opens that post-punk, dance-pop styling, continuing the former but embracing the latter after moving on from a self-titled debut piece. Toying with instrumental hooks and shock moments of sudden, fiery explosions are key to Cacti, a prickly beast of an album.
Synth notes pop through blue notes (deathwish) and takes centre stage as the rhythmic core. Much of Cacti is dependent on the synth stylings, and they pair up well with Nomates’ vocal range. Title track Cacti brings reproach to being on the outside, a powerful piece that showcases a desire for independence in an otherwise split world. Cacti is a confident number, as are the rest of the tracks. Sincerity like this paired up with brooding basslines and vocal layers that ever-so-slightly bleed into one another, moving from ear to ear, because at the core of Cacti is the realisation that “alone we’re the bare bones of truth”, a powerful lyric to push back against the curve of indie rock sentimentalities.
Doubling that up with Saboteur Forcefield gives a blur of independent force. Spite is a phenomenal track that ties it together – those lo-fi synth notes are barely perceptible above the crushing drumbeat and the defiant lyrical approach. Nomates makes it clear that they cannot be defined by the thoughts of others, it gives the high point of Spite such an encouraging position to be in. Inherently angry at someone or something, and rightly so, those punk charms, the Blondie and Underworld blur that comes from that track is a defining moment, an absolute heavy-hitting masterclass. Pumping the breaks on Fawner gives an introspective, glittering acoustic break for Cacti, and its listeners, to breathe. Cacti builds and builds, it eventually hits its high point of charming, calculated brilliance and stays there.
Piano ballads burn through Same Gun, and lighter instrumental flourishes mark the last few segments of Cacti, which loses its edge and replaces it with a cooler clarity that pushes Nomates and her style to the next level. Apathy Is Wild is an important warning for getting the senses in order and making for a productive momentum even if the brain is not there with you. That importance is founded and considered so clearly on Cacti, a wonderfully mixed, spacious album that tries its hand at a lot of sub-genre stylings and manages to make most, if not all of them, stick. Cacti almost begs its listeners to take a bit of responsibility for both themselves and their actions, their interests and their goals. It is hard not to do so when Nomates’ powerful representation of all of those clarifying pieces is as strong and engaged as this. Dance-pop stylings to start soon turn into soothing, important moments of raging against the confines of the mind. Break through that with Cacti, a quality record with a quality heart and message to it.
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