Photo By Kris Kirk

It’s becoming more difficult by the day to transform goth pop and cold waves’ ‘ hues through sound, but Choir Boy are doing so through the singularity of vocalist and primary songwriter Adam Klopp. The Salt Lake-based four-piece are a delicate juxtaposition against the bleakness of romance, with Klopp’s debonair range being akin to an angelic cherub on the shoulder of a devil. Turning the tables on an insult Klopp encountered while fronting punk bands in Ohio, the name “Choir Boy” represents everything ugly beautified through this point in his life and entirely his to define alone even in the most grim circumstances.

That remains a constant ’til this day. Alongside guitarist Michael Paulsen, bassist Chaz Costello, and saxophonist / keyboardist Jeff Kleinman, the band turn black into pastel through a dreamy stasis of anti-desire and longing on “I’ll Always Let You Down”, the band’s first new music since their 2020 breakthrough, Gathering Swans. Under the bedazzled production of Jorge Elbrecht (Sky Ferreira, Japanese Breakfast), ‘80s guitars rippling through celestine skylines as Klopp deprecates himself at the feet of love conjures a dark pop ebullience. “I’ll disappear in the crowd / Trade my complexion for another round,” he sings. “Somehow I’ll piss away that money I found / Yeah, I swear I’ll always let you down.” This man is anything but charming, but the opposite of love is equally fixating.

Directed by: Choir Boy

Choir Boy’s “I’ll Always Let You Down” single is available now on Dais Records.