Originally published on metropolis.co.jp on May 2014

Cleveland, in addition to being the home of the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, has an illustrious pop history dating from Alan “the father of rock ‘n’ roll” Freed’s radio show on to progressive punk rockers Pere Ubu and further afield.

“I like a lot of bands from Ohio—Pere Ubu, Guided by Voices—and I like a lot of ’70s and ’80s Cleveland punk,” Cloud Nothings’ Dylan Baldi muses. “I don’t know if I feel a connection with it musically, but I like it and it’s surely influenced me at some point.”

Better reference points for Baldi’s rollicking indie might be fellow Midwesterners The Replacements or East Coasters Dinosaur Jr. Launching in the late 2000s as the proverbial dude in a basement with Garage Band, Baldi’s Cloud Nothings come from the same suburban headspace that spawned a zillion indie rock bands. And as the band’s increasing ability to reach audiences across the world shows, it remains a mental space that many can still relate to.

Cloud Nothings—which also includes other fellow Clevelandites, drummer Jayson Gerycz and bassist TJ Duke—have just released Here And Nowhere Else, its fourth album for Carpark in as many years. With Baldi happily ensconced in Paris with his girlfriend, the songs are more positive than on the band’s previous outing, Attack On Memory.

“The title is a lyric from the song ‘I’m Not Part of Me,’” Baldi explains from Tallahassee, Florida, where his band is about to perform. “It was a phrase that encapsulated the theme of the record, which is about being able to find the good aspects of wherever you are and whatever you’re doing. Rather than focusing on past negatives, it became important to me to focus on the present—to find the good in everything.”

The song is an effusive bashup of guitars and drums, Baldi keening good-naturedly above it. “The song came at the last minute, the day before we were to record,” he recalls. “I sat down and it just sort of happened. We worked it out in a couple of minutes, so it pretty much came out of nowhere at the very end. But it turned out lyrically to be one of the most vital songs on the record.”

Songs that strike like lightning, Baldi contends, often turn out the best. “Songs that emerge out of nothing seem to be the ones that I actually keep,” he says, “and a lot of songs on the record came about that way—they just happened. I tend to like the stuff that feels immediate and raw.”

Baldi plays down the effect of Paris and romance on his new album, observing that the “streets stink and are filled with shit.” But there’s no question that his current happy relationship transmits directly into the album.

The lo-fi directness of his music makes Baldi a sturdy heir to a long tradition of the emotive in indie rock. “Music is a good way for people to express themselves who have trouble doing it in other ways—people who aren’t that social,” he affirms. “It’s easier for some people to express themselves in song, and it’s a healthy thing to make sure you’re grounded and aware of yourself.”

Hostess Weekender, Jun 21-22.