09/12/2022 Hardly Raining
Cigarettes After Sex returned to Seattle for the fifth time on September 12, 2022. The El Paso-then-Brooklyn-based dream-pop trio includes Greg Gonzalez (vocals, guitar), Jacob Tomsky (drums), and Randall Miller (bass).
Like most of the band’s shows, this one was sold out. An hour-long entry line wrapped around the block outside the Showbox SoDo. Cigarettes have amassed a large global following, in part because of their online presence. As an all-ages show, this audience also leaned teenaged, with many groups of young folks being dropped off by their parents.
Over a compact 80-minute set with no opening act, C.A.S. played 15 songs drawn from their three albums, I., Cigarettes After Sex, and Cry. Crowd favorites included “K.,” “Heavenly,” and especially “Apocalypse.” This time they skipped their recent cover of REO Speedwagon’s “Keep On Loving You,” which is worth a listen. Gonzalez whispered tender (and sometimes explicit) vocals through reverberating melodies and plodding drums. As usual, the band’s live sound was fully faithful to their recordings.
It was a moody showcase of black and white. Both the band and fans were, as the lyric goes, dressed in black from head to toe. Fog billowed into monochromatic spotlights and dim projections. Often the only one illuminated, frontman Gonzalez crooned slowly on themes of romance. Couples swayed, kissed, screamed, and sang along. Cigarettes After Sex brought intimacy to an 1800-capacity venue, and could not be more aptly named.
Cigarettes continue their North American tour through November 2022. They have already sold out most shows.
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