by Chanell Noise (@igetsalty)
Mock Identity raised the bar for post-punk yields in D.C. and elsewhere for that matter. Where You Live, their four-song album is upbeat, angsty and excellent. Yes, excellent. Adriana-Lucia Cotes’ vocal range is insane. Her pained emotions twist into annoyance then pure catharsis. A listener wants to get just as free (although you probably won’t sound as good). On “Inescapable,” Cotes sings, “I don’t know who I was when you met me”.
Production value sits at a significant quality on both the physical and digital sides. Percussion from Nate Scheible is blissful yet chaotic. Josh Hoffman bleeds melancholy into each track with the bass and Jeff Barsky picks everything up into a hellish fire with guitar. This entire mix pushes the envelope in a dangerous way - too much of anyone and it could get messy. High risk, high reward.
The last ten seconds of “Inescapable” emulate the feeling one gets when in a roller coaster at the height of the first drop. Excitement. Anxiety. Then euphoria. The four songs are alike in this way. The beginnings of the songs tease avant-garde unfamiliarity. Then a cohesive bond sets in as vocals, bass, guitar and drums cook down together. The four-piece band balances each other so well that the abrupt end to the album (“Slow”) is startling. No build up, no fade out: Mock Identity serve up the decadent rock goods and exit stage left.
Unfortunately, the band is actually exiting… stage left. Their last show together was scheduled for March 18 at Rhizome. Due to COVID-19 concerns the show was canceled and there is no discerning word on when or if Mock Identity will ever serve us the goods again.