ALBUM REVIEW: CAT’S EYES - CAT’S EYES

Sure, The Horrors have always been labeled (at times rightfully) as a gloomy, gothy, morose band. But even in their darkest hour, the five Southenders have gleefully quoted the likes of The Shangri Las and the Phil Spector-chaperoned girl groups as influences. Even when the whiff of krautrock was strong, a hint of that bit of the 60s was there, in the spoken lyrics or drum patterns.

From these very influences Cat’s Eyes came to be. The project of Horrors’ frontman Faris Badwan and Canadian soprano Rachel Zeffira, it shamelessly swims in a sea of 60s girl group sensibilities. Badwan lets his voice, a voice once growling and spitting the words with disdain, be vulnerable and the pianos seem to mould it however they want. Zeffira’s fragile vocals add to each song a delicacy that feels otherworldly.

While the album is almost overwhelmed by the gentle pianos and pop ballads, that is not to say there is no twist to it. Sure, words like ‘dark’ and frightening’ have no place here, but Badwan has a passion for Joe Meek that is hard not to see and he does let the guitars and pieces of psychedelia run freely on the record at times, a bass line that is Charlatans-scented, the melodies sometimes so complex you need to hear them several times before they unravel completely. However, it’s hard to find a better word to describe Cat’s Eyes’ work other than downright catchy.

The greatest moment of experimentation here is the heavy distorted Sooner or Later, Badwan’s voice turning to old habits. Yet this bit, while a great piece in itself, feels a bit estranged in the company of The Best Person I Know and The Lull, eerie pop songs, the kind the duo wanted to make. And from this desire to create pop music rises an album of sheer beauty that charms you from first to last second. 

~ Ana Dinescu