Graves‘ is the second in a pair of back-to-back single releases from rising Brighton four-piece Wild Cat Strike. The first, Horses, dropped late last year. Sparse and moving, ‘Graves’ unveils another facet of Wild Cat Strike’s newly sharpened sound – an idiosyncratic, noisy-beautiful brand of alternative rock that is brimming with post-rock and folk influences.
Gigging since 2012, with sets at festivals including 2000trees and Y Not adding to recent support slots for bands including The Xcerts, and regular headlines in their hometown and beyond, Wild Cat Strike have developed into a formidable live outfit while building up momentum in the studio via a flurry of previous EPs. With high praise behind them for these previous outings, Wild Cat Strike’s compelling new recordings have found the perfect niche on the sonically adventurous Small Pond imprint, home to the likes of The Physics House Band and Luo.
Graves continues where Horses left off, delving into a world of dynamic switches, raw and flowing melodies and candid, emotionally charged lyrics that ruminate on life, death and memory. ”Graves’ is about the coercion of good intentions, and the submission to neurosis’, explains frontman Danny Byrom, whose visceral vocals are swept up on a tide of guitars that sway from gravelly foreboding to soaring euphoria and back again. Byrom’s voice and guitar are joined by Max Boughen (guitar), Chris Whitehorn (bass) and Joe Caple (drums).
Whereas their last EP (I Want To Be The White That Sleeps In Your Bones) boasted huge instrumental soundscapes, each song averaging 8 minutes in length, on their new tracks Wild Cat Strike have maintained their adventurous, experimental charm and flair for sonic abrasion but confined it to a more disciplined format. That’s not to say that the cacophony isn’t there; it is. These days, however, it is concentrated into a succinct and arresting songs that hook hard on the heartstrings, and demand repeat listens as they crisscross in and out of chaos.
Capturing the momentum of the last few months, Wild Cat Strike are currently wrapping up their debut album, a full LP of new material set to emerge later this year.
Wild Cat Strike live dates (more TBA):
18th February – The Hope & Ruin, Brighton, w/ LIRR
20th March – Folklore Sessions @ The White Rabbit, Brighton
28th April – Bad Pond Festival @ The Arch, Brighton