Cable Street Collective have released their new EP Where Now From Here?
The London-based 6 piece released their debut EP The Best of Times in 2014 and have played at a number of festivals such as Bestival, Secret Garden Party and Isle of Wight Festival. The band say they’re “massively inspired by African music such as 80s Congolese soukous artists like Loketo or Kanda Bongo Man, 90s South African music like Mzwhake Mbuli and more recent groups like Djaaka, Songhoy Blues and Mbogwana Star.” This influence can most definitely be heard on Where Now From Here?
Where Now From Here? opens with So We Go, a bubbly, bassy offering which dives straight into the bands signature playful poppyness. There’s a summery vibe to the track with nods to steel drums in the electronic chorus. The hand percussion and lively guitars add another joyful element to the track.
Their single Wonderland is the second track on the EP and opens with a flurry of bubbling electronic beats before a deep baseline and poppy keys swell in. Guitars add even more depth to the multi-layered track. The flow of the chorus to me sounds reminiscent of Foundations by Kate Nash and Fiona’s vocal is equally as understated. The quirky beats and manipulated sounds lend the track an off the wall edge, like a slightly less out-there version of Superorganism. The track breaks down and descends into a swirl of synthesisers and harmonies before the infectious, ear-worm tune returns.
When talking about Wonderland Cable Street Collective said “Lyrically, it uses Alice in Wonderland as a metaphor for a relationship. And the sometimes uncomfortable ways it can make you feel like you’ve lost control of yourself, or forgot who you are.”
Anyway sparks what could be the start of a slower pace after the excitable So We Go and Wonderland. The tone of this track is slightly more melancholy but the recognisable electronic guitars chime in and the beat drops with a flurry of electronic sounds. Again, I sense a Caribbean holiday vibe with the guitar strums which are ever so slightly reminiscent of the Two Door Cinema Club style.
Nobody Smokes Any More combines the bands signature guitars with distorted vocals and subtle drum beats. It’s the perfect track for swaying along to the tune but then the breakdown kicks in taking it in a totally new direction. We’re treated to an instrumental of heavy beats, peppered with guitars, distortion and electronically modified harmonies.
Final track The Very Best opens with a bassy riff and an addictive beat. The sunshiney guitars are back in full force for one final flourish. It’s an all over happy and upbeat track praising the best things about the summertime proclaiming “the clouds dance, the world’s aglow.” There’s no better way to end an EP then with a track so joyous and Cable Street Collective definitely leave you feeling filled with the joys of summer.
Where Now From Here? is out now. Have a listen to So We Go below and find out more about Cable Street Collective here.