“Holy shit, I got this riff!” In this way Kaupe, an ambitious band with influences spanning decades, was born in 2016. The Florida-based project started life between two eclectic individuals whose propensity to riff off each other knew no bounds. Two years later, with two other equally talented members onboard, the group went on to release their debut The Depths, which brought nation-wide recognition and shows with Andrew W.K. and Virgil Donati among others. Now, after having hammered out an even hungrier record than last time, the band are ready to release Cognitive Dissonance.
Muscular, progressive, colorful. From the first moment of “Death Rattle” to the grand finale of “Capsized”, the sound is captivating through every twist and turn. And it’s a long record – ten full-on tracks and a creepy interlude (an ode to Twin Peaks, no less). There is a feeling of adventure throughout, both in the unpredictable songwriting and the wide range of influences – and not a single word is spoken.
Kaupe’s sound is one that inspires visual imagery. Dark atmospheric film-score-style tracks set to vivid scenes with carefully selected musical movements spanning decades of high-energy rock, metal, punk, new wave, and classical. And it is this that makes Cognitive Dissonance such an apt title for the record – except instead of having two conflicting ideas, it’s akin to being pulled in multiple directions by different strands of musical history
Cognitive Dissonance will be released on Feb 19, 2021 and can be pre-ordered here on Bandcamp.