LISTEN: Catbear – ‘Love And War’

If you’re caught between wanting to move on from a past relationship, but you can’t stop thinking about your ex while in lockdown; Catbear‘s latest single ‘Love And War’ will lift your spirits. The track is a catchy electro-pop offering designed to distract you from thoughts of your past loves.

Formed of Zoe Konez and Sarah Smith, Catbear are a DIY duo who make danceable, 80s inspired, synth-soaked bangers. The LGBTQ proud pair record and produce all of their music from Konez’s home studio in London, and released their debut album Beast of the Night in 2018. New single ‘Love and War’ is lifted from the record, and according to the band, it’s “the soundtrack to your quarantine daydreams of the ex you love to hate.”

The duo explain the track’s premise in more detail: “’Love and War’ is a reminiscence of a doomed love affair. When you knew all along it was destined to end, but there’s something magnetic, irresistible that pulls you along through it; and even at the end you can still look back fondly at the lustful wrestle towards the inevitable implosion”.

Listen to Catbear’s new single below, and follow the band on Facebook & Spotify for more updates.

 

Kate Crudgington
@KCBobCut

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EP: Stef Fi – ‘Girlhood’

A poignant reflection on grief, growth, and grappling with the repercussions of a racist world; Stef Fi has shared her debut EP, Girlhood, via Sistah Punk Records. Best known as the vocalist & guitarist of black feminist punk band Big Joanie, Stef Fi (aka Stephanie Phillips) has shared four alt-punk tracks that provide “sketches of a girl” resisting hate, and trying to find hope in the harshest of realities.

Mellow opener ‘What Remains’ broods with quiet intensity, setting the pensive, yet resistant tone of the EP. “Open wide and swallow divine” Stef directs, over steady beats and ominous guitar riffs. Her punk attitude breaks through on following track ‘Nowhere’. The quiet, uncertain lyrics of the verses contrast well with the distorted riffs and defiant words in the chorus.

“This town will be the death of me”, muses Stef on the eponymous ‘Girlhood’. The song was inspired by the footage of police attacking a young black girl at a Texas pool party in 2015. Extrapolating on what the victim may have felt, Stef delivers the line “I had spoken then I saw, I knew it was my time to fall” with calm resignation and maturity, powerfully contrasting with the violence the young girl experienced. It’s a jarring listen, but one that’s delivered with care and gentility.

‘The Garden’ closes the EP, with its rolling riffs, rumbling percussion, and more of Stef’s yearning vocals. Despite being rooted in inequality, Stef Fi’s Girlhood is a considerate, tender offering that showcases her talent as a songwriter, and as a woman who is dedicated to spotlighting the struggles of others.

Order your copy of Stef Fi’s debut EP on bandcamp. Follow her on Twitter for more updates.

Photo Credit: Nick Paulsen

Kate Crudgington
@KCBobCut

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Track Of The Day: Nuala Honan – ‘Head Undone’

‘Head Undone’ is the second single from Bristol-based, Australia-born, independent artist, Nuala Honan’s second album, which launches later this year. It marks a creative evolution for the former acoustic folk artist, and is an excellent representation of the dynamics and power punk sound of her new live band. 

With Nuala’s usual excellent storytelling, the song channels childhood memories associated with fears of going under anaesthetic, and triggered by a family trip to the Great Barrier Reef. 

Punk-metal guitars lead into a recreation of the anaesthetic, before the fast pace mirrors the chaos, as her fears run rampant.

The start-stop rhythm of the guitars is reminiscent of Nirvana whilst the bridge of the song slows to a dreamy pace, before creating a hazy, buzzing soundscape. Then the guitars seem take off like birds, a beautiful launch into a revived picking up of pace, before a cathartic solo leads to a climactic clash of drums and guitars brings the song to a satisfying end. Honan’s fears are brilliantly replayed in ‘Head Undone’ by her powerful voice, the energy of the thrashing guitars and drums, and the mystical vivid imagery of birds. 

If YOUR head is undone in these strange times, then the cathartic angst-driven beauty of this song is exactly what is needed!

Watch the homemade new video for ‘Head Undone’ now:

Listen to ‘Head Undone’ on Soundcloud and Spotify. And catch Nuala Honan live online for her single launch gig on 28th April – 7pm on Facebook Live, and 8pm on Instagram.

Fi Ni Aicead
@gotnomoniker

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Track Of The Day: Notelle – ‘Alive’

A dark, dense, atmospheric exploration of hysteria; Nashville-based artist Notelle has shared her latest single, ‘Alive’. Self-described as “nightmare pop”, Notelle blends hushed vocals, warped beats, and seething synth textures to create her claustrophobic new sounds.

Inspired by the likes of Nine Inch Nails and Billie Eilish, Notelle cherry picks elements of industrial, pop, and electronic music in order to create her own tracks. “Leave me here to sit in this darkness / and I’ll be just fine” she muses on ‘Alive’, over unnerving beats and interlacing electronics, before the manic, crashing percussion of the track’s outro acts as a cathartic, aural purge. Based on her own experiences of toxic relationships and gas-lighting, ‘Alive’ is Notelle’s most personal release to date.

She explains the premise of the track further: “There’s a point in hysteria where you begin to feel electrified. When you love someone who is pushing you to the brink of insanity, it has a way of making you feel more than you’ve ever felt prior. You experience every emotion, all at once, in such an alarming way, and I wanted to explore that in this track.”

“I’ve been in a situation before where someone was questioning my own perception of reality, telling me that my understanding of what was going on wasn’t accurate – lying to me, gaslighting me. It pushed me to an emotional breaking point that was totally new. It felt like I had shot-up adrenaline, and it was startling and liberating at the same time. Straddling the line between total madness and invigorating emotional depth, I realized that this was unbelievably toxic, yet I had never felt more alive.”

Listen to Notelle’s new track below, and follow her on Facebook and Spotify for more updates.

Photo Credit: @thederricklipschitz

Kate Crudgington
@KCBobCut

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