Cold Gawd Releases GLORY2 EP, Shares "Steel" Music Video
Frontman Matthew Wainwright explores distance and touring fatigue across the California band's most polished release yet.
COLD GAWD has released a music video for 'Steel' and shared its new EP, Glory2, out today on Dais Records.
Cold Gawd's new EP Glory2 brings forward the muscular distortion of their God Get Me The f Out of Here LP (2022) and the lush production I'll Drown On This Earth (2024) and adapts them to a new era.
For the California shoegaze band's founder and frontman/guitarist Matthew Wainwright, the opportunity to tour extensively has been a lifelong dream. 'I worked my whole life to get to the point where I could pack in the van with my friends and my songs and see the world,' he says. After receiving critical praise for their sophomore album, Cold Gawd took their show on the road, supporting bands like Spiritual Cramp, Soft Blue Shimmer, High Vis, and more. Then, upon returning home from their fall 2025 tour, the allure of childhood dreams began to fade and the reality of exhaustion took its place.
More than being a record about touring, Glory2 examines the frustration and deep longing stemming from distance. Musically, the EP is the band's most realized and captivating production to date. Cold Gawd's effervescent distortion and pummeling grooves continue to be the band's trademark, but are newly reflected across the track list. Songs on Glory2 pull in-genre inspiration from shoegaze luminaries like Beach House and DIIV, but also branch out—infusing influences from hip-hop collective BROCKHAMPTON as well as emo rockers Tigers Jaw.
Glory2 opens with an expansive statement. With 808s, glitchy breakbeats, and twinkly synth leads, it's Cold Gawd's most polished production to date, without a distorted guitar in sight. As the EP fades, violins feign a sense of security before dismantling in the distorted opening drum fill of 'Steel.' On this track, which arrives with a music video today, the intensity throughout the track burns with a desire to break through an impenetrable obstacle, a figurative 'steel plate' embedded in the narrator's head.
The final tracks on Glory2 delve deeper into sensitive subject matter and songwriting intention. 'Miracle' is an immersive and affecting devotion to love that defies distance and it's a mature step forward for Cold Gawd and a confident step into new territory. The EP closes with 'Glory,' a song dedicated to Sophie, Wainwright's late family dog that passed away just before Cold Gawd embarked on their 2025 fall tour. It's a fitting finale for the record as it features the culmination of all Cold Gawd eras up to this point. Wainwright sings with resolve not anger on 'Glory.' Reflecting on the eternal memory of a lost companion, Wainwright sings 'now I see you in every friend.' Compared to the shattering turmoil experienced earlier in the record, 'Glory' ends with hope for peace.
Glory2 features contributions from members Brandon Aviles (Guitar/Production), Cameron Fonacier (Drums), and Cameron 'Duck' Burris (Bass/Vocals), producer Max Mercier. Glory2 is the group's most collaborative effort to date and it's out today on Dais Records.
Tracklist
Glory2
Steel
Grease
Bomb Pop
Miracle
Glory
Cold Gawd Live
Sep 03 Los Angeles, CA — Moroccan Lounge with Soft Blue Shimmer

Photo Credit: Tori Siperly
Photo Credit: Tori Siperly