Caleb Nichols’ ‘Dark Age’ Is a Slow-Burning Indie Gem About Grief, Change, and Everything in Between
Caleb Nichols just dropped a new single called ‘Dark Age’ and it’s the kind of song that feels like it’s been playing somewhere deep in the back of your head for a while. Like it already knew how strange and heavy things have been lately.
It’s from his upcoming album ‘Stone Age Is Back’, out October 3 on Royal Oakie Records (they’ve put out stuff by Sugar Candy Mountain and Sandys too). If this track is anything to go on, the full record’s going to hit hard. ‘Dark Age’ isn’t just about losing someone, it’s about all the other weird, quiet griefs too. The kind you can’t name right away. A breakup, a fading future, the gut-level fear that something big is shifting and we’re just watching it happen.
Musically, it’s all misty guitars, brushed drums, and that warm, slightly-off-kilter indie rock vibe that makes you think of Elliott Smith or early Modest Mouse. Nichols sings in this delicate, double-tracked way that sounds like he’s trying to hold something together while it slowly slips away. It’s quietly devastating.
The whole thing was recorded in just five days in Oakland with engineer Jay Pellicci (The Dodos, Deerhoof), and you can feel that immediacy. The video is out now too, and it pairs nicely with the song’s moody, rain-soaked atmosphere. Don’t expect a narrative or anything flashy, it’s more about capturing a feeling, which it does really well.
Check out the video for ‘Dark Age’ below, and keep your eyes on ‘Stone Age Is Back.’ It’s shaping up to be one of those albums that lands right when you need it.
Headline photo: Aidan Dillon
Caleb Nichols Official Website / Facebook / Instagram / Twitter / Bandcamp
Royal Oakie Records Official Website / Facebook / Instagram / X
