Sugarcoat It

Three years after their outstanding debut album ‘The Soft Landing’, Belgian band Calicos return with sophomore effort ‘Sugarcoat It’, an exploration of authenticity and identity in music by a band that both broadens and deepens their sound. The album is released on 22 November, followed by an extensive and exciting release show tour.

Calicos instantly earned their rightful place in the Belgian music landscape with their excellent blend of americana, indie and folk on 2021’s ‘The Soft Landing’. Single Nova became an alternative hit, and both fans and critics fell for the dreamy sound that never fails to impress live. Their fame also grew outside of Belgium, notably in The Netherlands, opening for The Haunted Youth, selling out venues in cities like Amsterdam and Groningen.

Preceding singles Comedown, Easy and Reliving already hinted at a sound shifting towards more downright indie, even though the characteristic americana and folk rock from the early days inextricably remain part of the band’s DNA. “It took us a while to find our direction, and we’ve overcome a few obstacles along the way”, frontman Quinten Vermaelen elaborates. “We asked ourselves: what kind of music do we want to make? By no longer trying to live up to outside expectations and rediscovering the joy of playing, we’ve come to the point where we want to be: an uncompromising collection of songs and sounds we all as a band stand behind.”

How that sounds? A little less like Wilco and Ryan Adams, and a bit more like Sharon Van Etten. ‘Sugarcoat It’ is a multifaceted album, going from unreservedly rocking over poppy to intimate and velvety. Comedown links Springsteen 80s pop to euphoric War On Drugs synths, Easy adds an irresistible pedal steel and Reliving rambles like a guitar in the hands of Kurt Vile, bathing in psych folk and roots. Opening track Blow Up is enthralling and epic, with a climactic finale, pulling the listener right into the album. Rush Rush is a flawless summer pop song, while Vermaelen’s hushed singing adds romance and yearning to Love Where Have You Been. And when In Motion puts you back down after 6 staggering minutes of delightful folky americana and a pulsing coda, bliss is all that remains.

‘Sugarcoat It’ was recorded in three sessions during 2023 and 2024, each time with the whole band and almost entirely live. The result is an authentic and edgy sound, distilled into a crisp and clear-cut sounding album by producer and mixer Tobie Speleman (cf. Isolde Lasoen, blackwave., J.Bernardt, BLUAI and Brihang). This search for a balance between authenticity and the longing for a touch of sweetness is also what ‘Sugarcoat It’ is all about. “Every song tells a story about finding meaning in the apparent futility of existence, and how the power to fill that void eventually comes from within”, Vermaelen says. “Self-exploration and acceptance, a celebration of life in all its aspects. It’s a call to live without regret, to be authentic, and to embrace and welcome the duality of life with open arms.”