Lost The Trail (LP) - Cliffs + Caves (Folk) Mother and daughter pair Lindsey and Claire Justice, or Cliffs + Caves, deliver a poetic musical landscape with their long-awaited 6-track EP “Lost The Trail” full of folk-inspired rhythms and emotional lyrics. The band says the EP is “an ode to the simultaneously beautiful and heartbreaking elements of life, which can be wild to experience both at the same time all at once.” But we think it is a shining example of how expert songwriting can create powerful imagery.
We’ll get into the beautiful vocals, lush instrumental productions and all the sonic goodies below, but we feel it necessary to take a moment to specifically address this band’s uncanny storytelling prowess. We have a saying here that the more specific you are, the more universal you are—it’s a counterargument to "relatability” and efforts to appeal to a general audience. There are millions of songs about love and heartbreak, and yet the poetic lyricism of Cliffs + Caves makes those concepts feel fresh and new by focusing on the details. References to chewing gum, lightning bugs, college sweatshirts, chickens in coops, being barefoot, truck beds…we could go on and on. More than just delivering beautiful music, they paint lush vistas with their songs that make them unique, catchy and memorable. It is that skill that separates the singers from the artists.
This is best exemplified on “Mint Gum” and “The Coop”—the first song about how simple objects evoke strong memories, the latter about gearing yourself up for the journey that is new love. Both songs are packed with specific, memorable and ear catching lyrics that offer something fresh and new to the well worn subject matter. The emotions are big, but the details are small—Cliffs + Caves flourish in the nuance of the everyday. Special shout out to guest David Ramirez, whose resonant baritone makes for a great duet partner in “Mint Gum.”
When it comes to just the pure joy of love, Cliffs + Caves look to the sun. In the EP’s opener “Sunrise", the band eases us into the project with the beginnings of a crush that quickly turns into an “explosive kind of love”—a sentiment married to the instrumentation which gets increasingly more rousing as the song progresses. We get a similar vibe in “Radiant”, comparing using the simple joys of the smell of jasmine and taste of strawberries to describe being in love.
When it comes to style, the storytelling feels like a more mature Taylor Swift who didn’t cross over, while the musicianship feels much more akin to Sheryl Crow. In fact, there were many moments we felt that particular songs would fit easily on “The Globe Sessions.” “The Coop” specifically gave us “Every Day Is A Winding Road” vibes.
We were already fortunate to review “Eso Si Que Es” a few weeks ago—a captivating and mesmerizing track with heavenly vocals. As we said in that review, this “is one of those records someone clings to when going through a trying time, and hearing it will always bringing them back to a particular moment in time when they worked through something difficult. This track is truly, truly magical.”
But by far, our favorite track is the closer, “Knew My Name.” An epic finale to a rich EP, the melancholy heartbreak of this track hits hard, containing the most raw and emotive vocals of the project. While the album starts glorifying new love, it ends with disappointment. “I’m holding onto the days when you still knew my name.” It’s the greatest hits of a Cliffs + Caves song—strong melody, beautiful vocals, driving and building instrumental and picturesque storytelling (“lightening bugs in mason jars”). Bonus, a soaring guitar solo to boot. This is the hit, ladies.
Overall, it was a joy to experience the artistry of Cliffs + Caves and if you are particularly a Sheryl Crow fan (like we are), you’ve just found your new favorite rising artists.