ANCHR Artist of the Week: Cola
Photo by: Colin Medley
The trio got together in 2019 when Darcy and Stidworthy reached out to Cartwright about collaborating on something new, after they’d met Cartwright on the road with one of his many other projects. Darcy describes the initial period of time working together as very natural, especially one they met for some in-person sessions. “We really just took time to enjoy the process of collaborating and writing songs together,” Darcy says. Once the pandemic hit, the group had to end up working separately from one another, and Darcy describes the solitude work as being a “defining color as well as a barrier” to their debut album called Deep in View.
Sonically, Deep in View is packed with distorted, hazy guitar tones that contrast with bouncy melodies and bright drumbeats. Lyrically, the group comments on wading through the modern world and living with technology. Darcy describes the process of writing the record as solo work combined with team efforts— "Ben and I had a flow writing this record where we would send each other demos every Friday. It was a really motivating way to write, as I would spend the week working on something but then get the bonus of hearing what Ben had written when I sent him my track,” he says.
If you’re a fan of Ducks Ltd., Wet Leg, or of course Ought, you should tune into the new album.
I have yet to experience any of Cola’s songs in person, but luckily they are hitting the road soon, including a stop at Sleeping Village. Don’t miss out on their debut Chicago show on July 21st—grab tickets here.