The Zolas - Come Back To Life

BC: Top 10 of 2021

by Grace Gearon

Vancouver indie rock mainstays The Zolas sprung back into action this year with a fully realized ode to 80s dance and 90s nostalgia. Come Back To Life draws inspiration from Brit Pop and cult-classic cinema while exploring socio-political themes with a textured and experimental edge. The Zolas have been playing together for long enough to break boundaries responsibly and this action-packed offering proves they’re ready to be our guides.

Bo Burnham’s transcendent comedy special isn’t the only great piece of COVID-adjacent art titled Inside released this year. The indie-rock quintet’s latest opens and closes with the sounds of the 7pm clanging pots and pans that once heralded the essential workers, and many of the tracks find them grappling with introspective thoughts while trapped in a room – being stuck inside one’s own head being an even worse fate than the physical boundaries.