Why does it feel like it’s been so long since In Transmission came out?  2021 wasn’t that long ago in the grand scheme of things, although with the pace Things™ are going it might as well be a lifetime ago.  It’s true, a lot has changed since then, both in the world and in the world of Capra.  For more info on that, check out Buke’s most recent interview with frontperson Crow Lotus. (Seriously, why are you doing anything else when there’s a new interview to listen to?)  With the release of Errors right around the corner, hot on the heels of a widely acclaimed debut, do Capra fall victim to the dreaded sophomore slump?  Did they peak too soon?

No.  They did not.  In fact, they doubled down on all the things that made In Transmission such a breath of fresh air in a scene that has the potential to get really stale really fast.  “My main goals going in were to structure the songs to let the vocals shine more often, more breakdowns, and to keep the raw attitude of the first album alive,” says guitarist and songwriter Tyler Harper.  And raw it is, chock full of anthemic d-beats, crunchy to borderline earth-shattering breakdowns, pounding drums and Harper’s wholly unique guitar style, halfway between atonal noodling and sludgy Southern metalcore.  According to Harper, the idea is that Errors dials back the chaos of In Transmission and allows the individual pieces to shine, allowing there to be something for everyone among the 10 tracks that make up the album.  Although, in my humble opinion, no piece shines brighter than the vocal stylings of Crow Lotus.  I have said it before and I’ll say it again: Crow Lotus represents everything that is great about heavy music, and her voice is just one of many voices we need to be hearing more of in the scene.  For her part, Lotus doubles down on the honesty of her lyrics on Errors, which is one of the facets that attracted me to Capra in the first place.  “On Errors, I allowed myself to write in a way that was more hopeless and true to how it feels when depression takes control of me personally; I feel that I owe it to others who experience the same thing,” says Lotus.  Perhaps less chaotic, but Errors is anything but softer; in fact, it is so much more ferocious and darker than In Transmission, both in lyrics and in riffs.

“CHSF” literally opens Errors up right where In Transmission left off; it is a continuation of the same song, but it also sets the tone for the new album by banging right into some of the classic riffing that typifies the New Orleans quartet, effortlessly dancing back and forth between crushing breakdowns and lithe, hypnotic melodic lines that at once are rousing and unsettling.  In fact, the one-two punch of “CHSF” and “Tied Up” clearly show Carpa are taking no prisoners here: between the two songs there’s like 50 breakdowns and at least as many two-stepping, circle-pit-opening moments.  Exaggeration, perhaps, but they did promise more breakdowns and they absolutely deliver on it.  For anyone who thought (stupidly, naively) that Capra wasn’t “hardcore” enough, Errors proves the haters wrong in the first minute.  Still, they don’t lose what makes them human.  Especially in the lyrics, there is a brutal vulnerability delivered by Lotus.  “Hell is my existence/A punishment to you/Why is it so hard for you to see me thrive?/To see me not wanting to fall apart?” barks Lotus at the climax of “Kingslayer”.  Lotus has always been upfront about mental health struggles, but, while I don’t feel this album is as hopeless as she makes it out to be, I do get that the sense that the gloves have come off.  There is plenty of bite behind the bark here, and you feel the weight of all the anxiety and depression felt in every tortured yelp.

Ultimately, Capra do what they do to help people and make connections.  Drummer Jeremy Randazzo and Harper started the band to keep themselves sober, and Lotus clearly uses her position as an outlet to bare her soul and reach people whose voices normally get trampled on.  Errors is an album that penetrates deep, but when it lands, the connection is deep and instant.  It is in every way a wonderful successor to In Transmission, and if closing track “Nora” is any indication of what album three will sound like, sign me the fuck up.  Until then, I leave you with the words of Lotus: “Care about us because we care about you.”

-Ian

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Errors is out October 6 on Metal Blade Records and Blacklight Media.  For more information on Capra, visit their Facebook page.