Washington, DC-based band Color Palette enthrall across the recently released Zombie EP, showcasing a sound steeped in shimmering dream-pop, hooky post-punk, and shoegaze atmospherics. From nocturnal melancholy to cinematic intrigue, the EP melds glistening synths, rumbling guitars, and captivating structural momentum. Color Palette previously caught our ears with fantastic singles “Grateful” and “Anywhere at All” — and now excel throughout the entirety of this stellar EP.
The EP’s title track opens in commanding form, unveiling heavy pulses of whirring guitar distortion — then quickly shifting into a catchy vocal-led allure, finding an enjoyable cross between post-punk and alt-pop. The rumbling guitar tones and debonair vocals seamlessly evolve into a hooky vibrancy: “Let me take you out / Your favorite club on Houston.” The gauzy guitar intensity re-emerges around the one-minute turn, punctuated by an ardent title-bearing refrain; the EP’s opener is a firm showcase of the act’s knack for both hooky immediacy and structural momentum.
Ensuing track “Nights Alone” traverses with a more subdued, aptly nocturnal tone — where warming bass bounces and shimmering guitars venture into a melancholic vocal immersion. “Now I’m feeling all alone, trying to find a touch of motivation,” the vocals ascend into twanging bursts, capturing a nightly sense of solitude and searching for purpose. A remix of the track, by GR1MM, also delights — concluding the EP with a more dance-ready, infectious take. “Anywhere at All” continues the captivating songcraft, ushering in a shoegaze-friendly textural pull; the hazy guitar tones and twinkling synths produce an invigorating sound, reminiscent of acts like Last Dinosaurs and Stars.
“Grateful” then emerges with a darkly impactful rock pull, embracing a post-punk bass thumping as sporadic touches of fervent guitars move in. Wordless, harmonious vocal work aligns with glistening synths for a dreamily inviting intrigue, before a cohesive return to the ferocious rock intensity; the EP consumes in its dynamic tonal range, and “Grateful” is an especially memorable example. Finale “Laura Palmer” is a sating send-off, invoking a Lynchian vibe with its namesake and “darkness underneath” lyrical references; lines about disappearing and dreams further the feelings of mystique, while also melding synths and guitars with spirited vibrancy in the “try me best” outro. The Zombie EP is a surefire success from Color Palette.
