EP: all cats are beautiful – ‘the things we made’

Released at the beginning of the month via Moshi Moshi, all cats are beautiful’s latest EP the things we made provides a heartfelt, off-kilter take on pop in the twenty first century with a beautifully developed sense of melody and texture. Where more self-conscious artists might have slipped into irony or even parody when playing with genre in the way this record does, the honesty and vulnerability of the lyrics instead steer it down a far more rewarding path; one that combines the hooks and emotional kick of the best pop with a willingness to experiment, keeping the listener guessing.

The band consists of “queer best friends” Elena and Kyle and this seven track release has a truly collaborative feel to it. Both are credited with playing multiple instruments and switch vocal duties throughout, while the way that the songs have been pieced together – often relatively sparse arrangements which sound nonetheless full of feeling – seems, somehow, reflective of the process of sending and receiving musical ideas across the internet during lockdown. The opening track of the EP – ‘(u know) u mean a long minute 2 me’, in which the lyrics apparently came from Kyle mishearing a line of dialogue in Netflix docu-series Tiger King, a fact that in itself makes the early-lockdown writing period extremely clear – was also the EP’s lead single. It sets the scene for what follows beautifully: a long, soft, introduction to the record which finally kicks into gear with the introduction of drums about two and a half minutes in, shifting from atmospheric pop to a shimmering lowkey take on disco.

If you’ve ever wondered (and I’m not sure why you would) what it would sound like if The XX tried their talented hands at making early 2000s slow jams, it might not sound a million miles away from ‘u c right thru me like a windowpane’. Certainly the atmospherics and soft vocal delivery which The XX made their trademark is evident here, but ACAB have far greater warmth in their lyrics and have more fully embraced pop sensibilities. So, in fact, a comparison to XX solo project Romy is probably more apt. The band themselves credit Owen Pallett’s ‘I Am Not Afraid’ as an inspiration for this track and the connection extends beyond a lyrical reference – both treat genre with the same flexibility while remaining refreshingly earnest. Julia Holter is another useful melodic reference point for the EP as a whole.

Other highlights include the rolling melodies of ‘skippin down the stairs like a slinky’ and the Blood Orange-esque ‘i get dayblindness when ur nearby’ which skitters along, built around a chorus to make connoisseurs of 2010s R’n’B swoon. Meanwhile, EP-closer ‘tryna b the 1 2 solve ur shape’ is the kind of ambient-inspired pop which wouldn’t have sounded out of place on Frank Ocean’s Blonde. 

There has clearly been a great deal of care taken in the construction of these songs – in their lyrics, their melodies, their arrangements and their recording and engineering. As a result, there isn’t a loose moment across the seven tracks; not a wasted or superfluous second, just twenty two and a half minutes of wonderfully imperfect pop.

the things we made, the new EP from all cats are beautiful, is out now via Moshi Moshi Records. Listen/download here.

Gregory Metcalfe
@GregorysParty

Photo Credit: Aaron Price

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Track Of The Day: all cats are beautiful – ‘thought i saw u in the shop last nite’

‘thought i saw u in the shop last nite’, the new single from all cats are beautiful, arrived earlier this month on London label 0800-MOSHI-MOSHI. It’s a blissed out track, perfectly suited to the summer months, which drifts along in its own groove – acoustic guitar melded with occasionally glitchy beats, synths and a vocal delivery equally intimate and detached.

The duo (comprised of Elena and Kyle) describe themselves as “two queer best friends making dance music but for sad people”, and the happy/sad dynamic comes across not only in the lyrics – which describe the sense of loss when someone close isn’t there anymore – but in the music and production. The self-produced band use minimal arrangements – the texture of the song is made up of just a few key elements – but still create a rich, warm sound which complements the vocal perfectly.

There’s a touch of early Hot Chip (whose first album was released on the same label) here in the band’s comfort with experimenting with pop, indie and electronica, bending the forms of multiple genres to their will, seemingly at ease. Similarly, the reference within the lyrics to Frank Ocean handily signposts another influence and another musical world that the band draw from. But perhaps attempting to classify this ‘post-pop’ group through comparisons and genres is besides the point. Their upcoming EP, from which this track is the second single, is titled the things we made, and there’s a pleasing simplicity to that which reflects something in the music – it sounds like exactly what you suspect it is: the sound of two talented people who care about each other a lot having a good time making music.

Watch the charming new video for ‘thought i saw u in the shop last nite’ here:

the things we made, the upcoming debut EP from all cats are beautiful, will be released via 0800-Moshi-Moshi very soon…

Gregory Metcalfe
@gregorysparty

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EP: Bitch Hunt – ‘Shapeshifter’

Bitch Hunt have just released their debut EP and we couldn’t be happier. The non-binary alt-rock four-piece (and I’m sure there are plenty of other hyphenated terms you could apply – this is a band with range!) are alumni of the 2017 edition of London’s First Timers Fest – a festival with an impressive track record of assisting in the formation of some of the best music coming out of the city in the last few years (Big Joanie and Charmpit both played their first gigs at the festival). As such, it’s been something of a wait for this debut EP for those of us who were already aware of the band, but the wait has proved to be very much worth it.

Shapeshifter offers a shimmering collection of five songs characterised by a lo-fi aesthetic and heartfelt lyrics. EP highlight ‘Eau Claire’, which was released as a single back in April and described by us as “perfect punk pop”, is a nostalgic song (though a nostalgia with the rose-tint wiped clear) written about singer Sian’s time spent in a Wisconsin town of the same name. Fittingly then, Twin Peaks fans might even detect a hint of Angelo Badalamenti’s soundtrack in the slacker bassline in the verse here, but a closer point of reference might be The Breeders’ ‘Oh!’ from 1990 album Pod. There’s a similarly woozy feel to the guitars and vocal delivery which accentuates the bittersweet content of the lyrics. In fact, the EP as a whole warrants favourable comparison to the early 1990s output of Kim & Kelley Deal’s band. That’s not to say there is anything derivative about this, though, Bitch Hunt have carved out their own distinctive sound and on this track in particular there’s a real sense of a landscape portrayed in the breadth of the sound – no mean feat considering the relative simplicity of the arrangements.

Closing track, ‘I Wanna Be Un/Happy’, showcases another side to the band’s sound. Here the guitar and bass interweave in a manner reminiscent of Interpol on the verse before the song bursts into life in the chorus. The contrast hinted at in the ‘Un/Happy’ of the title is reflected in the difference in sound between the doom-filled verse and uplifting chorus.

A spiky guitar part on ‘Identity Clinic’ provides the clearest link between what appears to be some of the influences on this EP – ’90s britpop a la Elastica & the bluesy end of the early 2000s garage revival (White Stripes, Black Keys etc). The lyrics are disarmingly open while remaining playful – “leave me out to cry”, we’re implored – and listening to the EP as a whole, the listener is left with the feeling that this mix of honesty, heartache and a sense of humour might be the defining characteristic of Bitch Hunt’s songs. ‘Out of Eden’’s biblical references serve a similar purpose – playing with our familiar understanding of phrases to provide counterpoint and illumination to what appears to be a story of two relationships – one destructive and the other restorative.

The EP can be bought for the low low price of £5 over on the band’s bandcamp page and has been released by Reckless Yes – a label with impeccable taste – so this reviewer would urge you to do so. It’s a real treat.

Shapeshifter, the new EP from Bitch Hunt, is out now via Reckless Yes.

Gregory Metcalfe
@gregorysparty

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EP: Joely Smith – ‘that’s when gd neighbours become gd friends’

thats when gd neighbours become gd friends, the wonderfully titled EP of demos from Joely Smith (usually found playing with London-based indie/pop-punk band adults) seems to have arrived almost by accident. For Smith, the process of recording these demos allowed her to let go of a group of songs which she didn’t feel necessarily fit with the sound of her band and declare them “finished”. For us listeners, Smith’s need to record is a gift – this EP is beautiful.

This might not be a universal experience, but there’s something deeply nostalgic about listening to demos – at least there is for anyone who spent their teenage years trawling through social media/pre-social media fan boards/whatever came before that (tapes passed round the playground?! Delete according to generation) for any sign of ‘lost’ recordings from their favourite bands; scratchy demos of songs which existed in far more polished and famous versions elsewhere. The act of listening to something half-formed, a glimpse into the process of writing your favourite songs, has a magical quality all of its own. That’s not to say that any of the songs in this EP sound unfinished or half-formed – quite the opposite is true – but that the aural aesthetic of demos carries an inherent warmth and charm. When that aesthetic is married to the down-played charisma of song-writing like Smith’s, the end results are rather magnetic.

Though the music here differs distinctly from adults, the same sense of humour and warmth runs through both projects. The EP opens with ‘Womankind’, a lofi hug of a tune. A fuzzy guitar and voice are joined, after the introduction, by bass, drums and a second guitar line (all played by Smith) and the whole thing comes together in a manner reminiscent of Graham Coxon’s solo work – a punk sound distilled through a warm and unassuming persona; the edges taken off, aggression stripped out, but the heart remaining very much in place.

Smith has explained the EP as consisting of songs which “didn’t fit within the adults sound“, and the evidence of that is in the eclecticism on show here. ‘Notice’ is filled out with a lengthy synth-led instrumental passage in the middle (which is not nearly as ‘prog’ as that description makes it sound), and there’s shades of ‘80s alternative bands like Beat Happening to songs like ‘Pale’ and ‘Light’. There’s something distinctly ‘90s about the EP as a whole, though – the guitar fuzz and mellow vocal delivery recall Pavement, the song ‘Light’ earns comparison to some of Pixies’ more melodic and less frantic work (‘Hear Comes Your Mind’ comes to … err … mind), and the melodic sensibility of Brit-pop bands like Elastica and Blur (the latter in their less pop moments) is present throughout. 

Smith has declared no intention whatsoever to perform these songs live, and no ambition to work further on solo material once she’s able to resume playing regularly with adults. So, we’ll have to be grateful for what we’ve got: a six track EP which manages to be both ambitious and lo-fi, varied but cohesive in sound, funny and sad (sometimes simultaneously). 

Listen to that’s when gd neighbours become gd friends on bandcamp now:

Gregory Metcalfe
@GregorysParty

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