Songs for Sabotage - CLEAN TRAUMA (2024) Hi Res

Sometimes pop music is so pristine and smooth that any genuine feeling or emotional resonance is eliminated, like a glimpse of humanity chewed up in the jaws of the autotuner. Not so on Clean Trauma, the sophomore album of California-based duo Songs For Sabotage, where catchy, electro-pop melodies are the irresistible bait, partially concealing the lyrical barbs beneath.

Every one of the album’s eight tracks is capable of burrowing its way into your mind and having you absent-mindedly humming along. What you then realize is that these catchy melodies are attached to lines like “Release me from this anxiety. I’m all alone and it feels like the last time.” (“Fortress”) and “Manipulate, intimidate, maybe then I will succeed.” (“Decay”).

Taking lyrical inspiration from being outsiders as kids (the album’s title derived from an ironic comment of their childhood experiences, with “some good clean fun” morphing into “good clean trauma”), vocalist/guitarist Lina Sophie and producer/multi-instrumentalist Richey Rose aesthetically embrace the sound of ’80’s/’90’s pop music like Depeche Mode and Ace of Bass as a vehicle for introspective lyrics you’d more likely expect from a shoegaze or goth-rock band.

In fact, some of those musical elements are on Clean Trauma too. While electro beats, synths, and Sophie’s clear, bright vocals are pushed to the front of the mix, shimmering guitars become more prominent as tracks like “Shattered” and “Decay” reach their peaks. Album closer “Cringe,” meanwhile, gives a musical nod to The Cure, with the track starting out on the album’s most dour note before the catchy electro beats overshadow the sombre tone.

And that’s ultimately a big part of the album’s charm. From the dance-pop opener “Killer,” to “Fortress” (with its trippy, descending synth line), or the brilliantly interweaving layers at the culmination of “Decay,” Clean Trauma is such a gorgeous, sonic ray of sunshine, but with the melancholy of the lyrics, the musical effervescence avoids being camp or cheesy.