Dreams Come True – The Cool Caps (reviewed by Dave Franklin)

Music is cyclical; we know that. It means that every few decades, we witness the emergence of a sound or style from the past being subtly (and sometimes not quite so subtly) worked into more contemporary sounds. Of late, it has been the eighties vibes that has been blossoming in the current sonic flower beds. And so we have found ourselves awash with shimmering synthy vibes to complement today’s cutting-edge sounds. 

But most people who utilise such past sounds are missing the point. The eighties weren’t so much about the creation of synth music; those were just the new technologies that bands were experimenting with. The eighties were about great pop music, something that often gets ignored at the expense of nostalgic sonics.

But not ignored by everyone; some people are smart enough to understand, and one of those bands is The Cool Caps. Sure, Dreams Come True, their latest single, chimes with warm, sun-kissed sonics, shines with digital talent and sparkles with heartfelt honesty. It certainly tips its hat to that decade to some degree. But it is, first and foremost, a great pop song. It’s as simple as that. (Hey, I know that my eighties experience was probably one of standing in a muddy field watching Killing Joke, but I know a great tune when I hear one.)

And great is not an overstatement. It marries those scintillating synth sheens, those layers of tone and texture together seamlessly and gets them to dance deftly over modern clubland beats. It is spacious (another hallmark of that early electronica sound) and shines bright. Back in the early eighties, when post-punk bands were peddling a heavy guitar sound, such music seemed so ahead of its time as to be alien. Now, such songs are so ahead of the pop pack that they act as a benchmark for others. this is such a song.

We find ourselves in a post-genre world, and music is all the better for it. It means that artists such as The Cool Caps are unburdened by the tribalism and rules that weighed music makers in the past. And the result of such liberty can be heard here. They are free to be influenced by the past yet still make music that looks to the future. They can wander between nostalgia and inventiveness and are free to bridge the divide between pop past and dance music to come. 

This is exactly why people fought so hard for new music to be accepted back in the day, why those who supported innovation and musical expression stood up against those who worshipped the guitar and advocated a sort of rock and roll conservatism, one that fiercely resisted change and who probably still had Led Zeppelin posters on their bedroom walls. I should know; I was one of them. And now we can all reap the rewards.