Has This Catfish Still Got Us Under Its Spell?

So, its been a long day and I’ve finally got the chance to sit down and browse through my
recommended videos on YouTube. After skipping through some meaningless clickbait titles, I
stumble across a video from a band rather close to my heart, that was Catfish and the Bottlemen with their new single ‘Longshot’.

Having not heard much in the way of new music from this live sensation for a good two years I was definitely not wasting any time pressing play, and as those opening vocal lines hit I knew this was going to be something good...


See, Catfish have always prided themselves in their live performance and as any fan of theirs can tell you, that’s definitely where their priorities lie, therefore releasing a new single in the form of a music video is definitely something worth talking about. The Welsh lads like to explore the visual arts in a different way to more mainstream bands (The 1975 for example) and their videos are often less focused on themselves and more on telling stories and setting scenes, so to see a more mainstream focused video with purely the band as the subject is definitely a change to their formula.

Now back to the music; although being rather industrial and raw this new song isn’t any less inviting and still brings with it everything you can expect from a Catfish number. From those characteristic chatty opening vocals that welcome us to their world, to the seconds where it all goes quiet and we’re left waiting for that punch back into the song. These have all become staples of the Catfish brand and we sure as hell aren’t complaining, however something feels different... Is it the almost metallic feeling of the opening guitar chugging away? The more mainstream focused writing employed in the chorus? Or even the lack of that innocent feeling they’ve carried so close up until this point?

We’re not quite sure all we know is right now we’re not screaming along but that doesn’t mean we wont be after another 10, no, make it 50 plays through, great to have these guys back on the scene and we can’t wait to hear what’s next.


Songs to listen to

‘Fire That Burns’- Circa Waves
‘29’- Run River North
‘Mixed Signals’- The Night Café


Written by Robert Couldridge
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