Cat Dowling “Animals”
Indie Singer-songwriter Cat Dowling has been praised over the years for her unique and stylish vocals. Like the ever-overcast skies of the rainy city of Dublin from which she hails her vocals have a dark and evocative quality that blankets you in raw passion and keeps you coming back for more. Dowling is one of those artists that you put on repeat when you’ve had a bad day when the obstacles in life seem insurmountable and you just want to zone out and swim within your own emotions and plunge depths for answers. Her career in music really kicked off around 2001 when she fronted the Irish electropop band “Babelfish” which then became Alphastates” in 2003. The band had some decent success and released one EP and two LP albums over the course of 9 years. At the beginning of 2010, they played their final show together and parted ways amicably, claiming that each of them felt life was simply pulling them in different directions. In an interview in 2010 Dowling had expressed interest in possibly releasing a solo album somewhere down the road, but at the time was too consumed with raising her newborn daughter.
Dowling seems to have carried her interest in creating a solo album long enough to finally have released her first solo full-length album near the end of 2021 entitled “Animals”. This album is nothing short of seductive. The track “Animals” from which the album gets its name, is a deep and emotional masterpiece with a light finish. The track starts out on the acoustic guitar with a quick alternating picking style that really brings about a sense of anticipation, or like you’re frantically searching for something important. As the song continues there are small additions, like deep and resonant bursts on the floor tom, or quick strums on a second guitar, that continue to layer the song with a sense of foreboding as if we are approaching the climax to a psychological thriller. The lyrics really accompany the song in a beautiful and melancholic way that balances and grounds you amidst the building anticipation. Near the end of the song, it breaks into an upbeat and hopeful air that neatly ties everything together. This part of the song really has a Regina Spektor feel to it with the tone of the guitars and the classic indie sound so many of us know and love. At first, the transition seemed out of place but as I listened again and again I came to really love the ending of the song. The cheerful melody that breaks you free from that sense of urgency and trepidation is such a great release for the emotions that build through the song. It’s got an almost cinematic feel to it, like a song that you would hear in a movie.
The video for Animals is nothing short of an imaginative wonderland filled with visuals that will keep you guessing at every turn. The video is done completely in sketch form. We are presented with a drawing pad and a few simple sketched lines. The video continues as if you are watching a flipbook where these simple lines begin to move and morph into other images. Each image blending, melting, evolving, falling, growing, and dissolving into something different. Although the sketches on the page lack any color being rendered with a simple pencil the video really brings me back to Pink Floyd's “The Wall”. I have always marveled at the creativity and imagination of those who can create such prolific works of art. If you are a fan of indie, dark emotional soundtracks, or singer-songwriters like Meg Myers, or Regina Spektor, Cat Dowling is absolutely worth the listen! Whenever you get the chance, I recommend checking out the album, or the single, “Animals” by Cat Dowling, you won’t be disappointed!
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