Wunderhorse is an indie rock band that was started by guitarist/vocalist Jacob Slater in 2020 in Cornwall, England. The group was initially a solo project outlet for the songs he was writing during the early days of the COVID pandemic. Slater fleshed out the group to a quintet to record these songs as “Cub”, the debut album that was released in 2022 to rave reviews.
Everything so far is what I’ve gleaned from googling the group online* after coming across the music off “Midas” over the last few months of 2024 and being blown away by this, their sophomore record. But to be honest, I still haven’t had time to go back to the debut, nor have I checked out anything by Slater’s near legendary punk trio Dead Pretties, whose breakup apparently broke a lot of fans’ hearts and sent Slater hurtling from London to Cornwall in the first place. These will likely require my attentions at some point but right now, I’ve just been content to lose myself in these 10 songs.
If you haven’t yet had the pleasure, Wunderhorse’s music is bluesy, punk-influenced, crashing, guitar rock. It’s a sound that if described to me in such a way, I wouldn’t have thought out of place in the explosion of American alt-rock commercial radio in the mid-90s and I would probably have run screaming from at that time. However, there’s something about this music, on this album: Slater’s songwriting and vocal presentation, and even the musicianship of Harry Fowler (guitar), Peter Woodin (bass), and Jamie Staples (drums). There’s an energy and a passion that has hooked me. Indeed, the spit and the sweat is palpable on each track, feeling like it’s present in the room with you, raising it’s elbows to clear some room to dance. You can definitely hear how this would be amazing live and in concert**.
Everything is quite good on this album but these three picks for you are the ones pulled from the heap on the day I wrote this post.
“Cathedrals“: “There are shipwrecks in the sea, there are blossoms on the tree, there’s this little part of me – that is you.” The riffs off the taut guitar string like sparks off a horseshoe. It all starts a bit soft before the wild abandon. Playing the loud soft loud contrast like Coldplay covering Nirvana willfully and unabashedly ripping off the Pixies. It’s all about love and pain and all the emotions in between. Naked and honest lyrics, recorded in a studio that sounds like it’s in a vacuum.
“Silver”: “Yeah, I was crooked from the cradle, I’m a bastard from the start, and I kept some pretty people in the hollow of my heart.” Track number four is a deceptive beast. It comes off as mellow with a jangly riff but it rocks and rants just the same. The name, too, is trickery – a precious metal as decoy for something sinister. Frontman and lyricist, Jacob Slater has said of the single: “Everyone has elements of their makeup that they’d rather not admit to or keep locked away and never look at.” Just more honesty, in words and practice, and in the frankness of the musicality.
“Rain”: “Do you feel the rain? Did it crawl up on your shoulders? Did it coil around your name? Did it slowly snatch the sunlight out of every waking day?” This is a dark and haunting number. It reminds me something of CanRock classic, “One gun” by 54-40, in the way in which it uses negative space and echo as a fifth instrument. It has the kind of sound you shoot for when you are out for a late night drive, a drive without destination, on an old country road, without streetlights, your brights constantly on because there’s no other car out here this late and you don’t want to accidentally hit an animal that could jump out through the mists at any moment. It’s a song for searching and losing yourself at the same time and keeps you good company while doing so.
*I was amused to learn that frontman Jacob Slater appeared in the very excellent Danny Boyle-directed miniseries on the Sex Pistols, portraying drummer Paul Cook.
**From what I’ve read, their shows are exceptional for their energy and the way the musicians lose themselves in the sound.
Stay tuned for album #3. In the meantime, here are the previous albums in this list:
10. Quivers “Oyster cuts”
9. The Jesus And Mary Chain “Glasgow eyes”
8. The Last Dinner Party “Prelude to ecstasy”
7. Vampire Weekend “Only god was above us”
6. Real Estate “Daniel”
5. Wild Pink “Dulling the horns”
You can also check out my Best Albums page here if you’re interested in my other favourite albums lists.
My (life in) music lists 