How do you feel about the accordion? It’s an instrument that might make you think of genres like Zydeco or Polka, or cities like Paris or Dublin. Or maybe Weird Al. Finn Manning, who plays accordion in Irish band Cardinals, wields his instrument with subtle panache — it’s central to their sound, but never used in a way that feels clichéd or predictable. His playing is melodic but textural, adding deep crimson and violet notes to Cardinals’ dark, romantic sound. Hailing from Cork, Cardinals are not the first band to mix post-punk and alt-rock with traditional Celtic elements, but rarely does it feel as natural as it does on their debut album. Finn’s brother, Euan — who leads the band — says they purposefully avoided “diddley eye” music but otherwise had no restrictions on their style.
Despite being a very young band — both in time together and in age — Cardinals seem to have their sound fully cemented on “Masquerade“, an extremely assured album that’s miles ahead of their already terrific 2024 self-titled EP.
The strongest Irish element on “Masquerade” is swagger — an unfakeable quality that’s in abundance, whether it’s on their swoonier, poppier material like “St Agnes,” “She Makes Me Real,” or the title track, or their darker, angstier songs like “Barbed Wire,” “Anhedonia,” or “The Burning of Cork,” which owes a little to Nirvana.
Those sides of the band are neatly divided across the two sides of “Masquerade” — envisioned as a vinyl album — which has been expertly sequenced. Finn’s accordion and Euan’s character-filled lyrics and impassioned delivery tie it all together. In an era where albums tend to front-load the best songs, “Masquerade” saves some of its strongest moments for Side 2. Not that there’s a bad song here — with 10 songs across 34 minutes, there’s no fat to trim, and every track hits. Ireland has been a hotbed of talent recently; Cardinals are not the “next” anything — they’ve already carved out their own unique and compelling path.
The Fat Angel Sings 