Cruel Mourning: A modern goth tribute to old-school new wave

Cruel Mourning just dropped the synth-pop album of the summer.

“Modern Tension,” the Denver trio’s debut full-play, released independently on June 5, is a modern goth tribute to old-school new wave, upbeat and brightened by the sunny dual synths of vocalist Daniel Craig and drummer-turned-Korg guru Jeremy Lombardo.

“Me and Jeremy are big synth nerds,” Craig admits.

Paired with the solid, understated bass of Adam Hawkes, the record grooves into some surprising places, including an electro cover of Tears for Fears classic “Watch Me Bleed.”

“It was, like, our first cover because it’s one of my favorite songs,” says Craig, who mixed and mastered the record himself. “We’ve played it at every show for more than a year.”

Opener “Miami Nights” is sweet, sweet synthwave, a breezy anthem that’s easy to move to, while bookend “I’m Yours” is melancholic in its innate longing, a familiar feeling in such a moody subgenre; the same can be heard on “Love Like an Altar.” Then there’s the retro-futuristic doo-wop of the track “Read the Signs,” a song almost defying description, and “If It Falls Apart,” a throwaway that sprang up by accident and nearly didn’t make the final cut.

“It was something Daniel was considering not having; he was just fucking around. The way it came to us was basically how it sounds on the album,” Hawkes says. “That one in particular just hit me. That’s just his weird creative process. You put the three of us in the room together when we’re trying to figure out a song, it’s chaotic a lot of the time, trying to figure out our place in these songs, then in five minutes he can write something completely different.”

Craig shrugs when he talks about the process now.

“For that one, the lyrics are important, but it wasn’t the lyrics that came to me first, it was the cadence in which I was saying the words,” he says of his hip-hop-inspired delivery. “So that song pops when you listen to it. I tried not to focus too much on lyrics. But my vocals were an instrument, just as important as a synth.”

Inside the influence

As Cruel Mourning’s primary songwriter, Craig’s flow is drawn from a deep well, as he dips into everything from horror rock — Misfits and Type O Negative are some of his favorites — to dark wave when spitting out the bones, particularly ’90s-era Depeche Mode.

“I try not to think too hard about it, so if they come out a little dark or weird in a way, I just keep it in there. When I record lyrics, it’s like gibberish at first. It makes no sense. Sometimes they’re not even words,” he says, noting that the end of “Read the Signs” is a good example. “The last line, I say, ‘Oh, I’ll find another rhyme.’ I said that because I recorded it, and I didn’t have another rhyme yet. But that ended up rhyming with the word I wanted to rhyme with. Lyrics, they mean a lot to me, but I like keeping in weird stuff like that. Every time I sing that lyric, I get a little laugh to myself.”

Laugh and dance along during Cruel Mourning’s release party at HQ on Friday, June 19, when Emergence, Frankenstein’s Girl 82 and BLDDDLTTR are providing support.

“Of course, the music is moody itself, but we don’t need to be 100 percent stoic on stage like we’re not enjoying it because we are having a blast,” Lombardo says, adding that he’s piling up effects pedals for the show. “We’re going to bring tons of more weird sounds.”

He and Craig played in groups in their former homes of SoCal and Chicago, respectively, before meeting here in 2023, shortly after Lombardo landed in Denver. Craig had been looking to start a new project, one that centered on his love of gothy electronic music, and Lombardo wanted to get back to gigging after taking some time off from his natural position behind the kit during the pandemic. That unexpected break allowed him to explore new sounds.

“When I heard some of these parts Daniel was creating, specifically in the song ‘Tell Me,’ and it becomes this intense, a little bit of this double bass moment, I was like, ‘Let’s keep ripping that.’ It’s bite-y, kind of menacing,” Lombardo says. “There are still some tones and keyboard parts and synth lines that are menacing, horror-y. I really love that whole combination that Daniel was able to create.”

Hawkes, a vet of the local punk-rock circuit, was recruited to round out Cruel Mourning shortly after Craig and Lombardo teamed up.

“I had to go from playing fast, down-pace punk-rock stuff to this real, settled-back style of playing, which I really enjoy,” Hawkes says. “But I don’t let go of my punk roots. I still play my bass slung down real low. Any time we’re trying to write something or remember something new, I’ll inevitably give my bass to Daniel, and the first thing out of his mouth is, ‘Damn, dude, this thing sits so fucking low. How do you play this thing?’”

“It is low. It hits my knees,” Craig confirms.

Weird is a good thing

The alliance resulted in Cruel Mourning’s first official release, a self-titled EP, in 2024. While the five songs on that EP are more traditionally morose, “Modern Tension” offers proper, polished synth-pop.

“The last one was trying to be a little more reverbed out,” Craig explains. “This time I was trying to make it a little more poppy, make my voice a little more dry. It’s a weird mix.”

Weird is a good thing here, though, and it’s catching the ears of local goths. The debut is being spun in the Lombardo house, too.  

“He’s had a lot of very, very kind words. Definitely a big fan of Daniel’s voice and songwriting, and Adam’s bass playing and energy,” the younger Lombardo shares. “He sees how good of a group of friends that we are, and good of a community we have. The big thing my dad always tells me is, ‘Dude, it doesn’t matter how big or small the show, as long as you’re with a good group of people, playing with a good group of people, good crowd, that’s all that matters. That’s the whole point,’” he continues. “That’s always resonated with me.”

The three members agree. With a summer slate full of shows across the Front Range, Cruel Mourning is hitting its spooky stride.

“I just want to create a really cool scene here in Denver and be a part of that scene and see the regular goths around town,” Lombardo concludes. “That’s what’s really important.”