Cola Inject Sharp Hooks into Hypnotic Post-Punk on New Single “Keys Down If You Stay”

In 2022, Tim Darcy and Ben Stidworthy, formerly of the band Ought, and US Girls and The Weather Station drummer Evan Cartwright joined forces to strike up a new project called Cola. They put out Deep In View, which was, effectively, one of the most compelling yet minimalistic debut albums of the year. Songs like “Water Table” and “Blank Curtain” set them apart from the tunes they were building in Ought. Deep In View was widely praised, and for good reason. Darcy, Stidworthy and Cartwright took their collective songwriting experience and forged an immediate statement, which was impossible to overlook.

Now, they’ve made a studio recording of “Keys Down If You Stay,” which has endured as a live staple for the band since their formation. It’s an anti-climax track that holds steady at a meditative pace. Darcy’s vocals are dipped in a near-spoken word sheen, as Stidworthy applies some tasty bass behind Darcy’s looping guitar. “Wading out, like a zero in the water / Remainder too strained / Knee-deep and straight out / Keys down if you stay,” Darcy sings. The song is built around Cartwright’s hi-hat beat, which came to him in a dream. “Evan woke from a dream one morning: the three of us jamming with the memory of this exact drum part still etched in his mind. That was how this one started…,” Darcy says. “Keys Down If You Stay” feels like the perfect transition for Cola as they head toward their next chapter together.

Check out the music video for “Keys Down If You Stay” and Cola’s upcoming tour dates below.

Cola’s upcoming tour dates:
04.19 – Toronto, CA @ The Baby G
04.20 – Cleveland, OH @ Happy Dog
04.21 – Chicago, IL @ Sleeping Village
04.22- Cincinnati, OH @ MOTR Pub
04.24 – Louisville, KY @ Whirling Tiger
04.25 – Nashville, TN @ DRKMTTR
04.26 – Memphis, TN @ Lamplighter Lounge
04.27 – Fayetteville, AR @ Smoke & Barrel
04.28 – Wichita, KS @ Kirby’s
04.29 – Norman, OK @ Norman Music Festival
05.1 – Atlanta, GA @ 529
05.2 – Durham, NC @ Pinhook
05.4 – Washington, DC @ Comet Ping Pong
05.5 – New York, NY @ TV Eye
05.13 – Montreal, QC @ La Sotterenea
05.20 – Cardiff, UK @ the Tramshed
05.21 – Manchester, UK @ YES (Basement)
05.22 – Edinburgh, UK @ Sneaky Pete’s
05.23 – Birkenhead, UK @ Future Yard
05.24 – Leeds, UK @ Brudenell Social Club
05.25 – Ipswich, UK @ The Smokehouse
05.28 – Brighton, UK @ The Hope & Ruin
05.29 – Bristol, UK @ Strange Brew
05.31 – London, UK @ Oslo Hackney
06.1 – Leffinge, Belgium @ De Zwerver
06.2 – Luxembourg, Luxembourg @ Rotondes
06.6 – Berlin, Germany @ Urban Spree
06.7 – Hamburg, Germany @ Aaalhaus
06.9 – Rotterdam, Germany @ Rotown
06.10 – Nijmegen, Netherlands @ Merlyn
06.11 – Hilvarenbeek, Netherlands @ Best Kept Secret
06.12 – Paris, France @ L’international
06.13 – Cologne, Germany @ Bumann & Sohn
06.14 – Antwerp, Belgium @ Trix Bar