UK three-piece Horsetalk have unleashed their first single onto the world, and it is a spectacular taste of what the band are capable of. The trio formed through long term collaboration between Ben Murfin and Harry Lavel (both vocalists and guitarists and previously members of Don’t Watch The News), and drummer Max Mousely.
The band describes their sound as "rooted in 70s folk storytelling" , and this perfectly describes one of the most prominent aspects of this single - the phrasing. Reminiscent of artists such as Bob Dylan and, more recently, Cameron Winters, Murfin switches between extending lyrics past their automatic rhythmic grid to packing words in very tightly, bringing a brilliantly varied and conversational atmosphere to the song. The distortion over the vocals gives the effect of hearing a voice speaking over a radio, and there is a certain Western-folk feeling early in the song that goes hand-in-hand with the phrasing choices made.
It is no surprise that a song titled ‘Love Ain’t Here’ centres around a lack of requited love and effort. Captured in lyrics “Love buys the next round if I got the last one” and “Love is on sale and I am cheap”, the song carries the heavy relentless feeling that comes with single-handedly supporting a relationship where love feels transactional. The chorus (if that is even the right descriptor as the song has no clear ‘chorus’ section) of “I’m already there / And love ain’t here” is simple to understand, and allows the faster, more complicated spoken lyrics throughout the song to breathe.
The piece constantly builds, warping into new sounds and harmonies, commanding attention throughout. For the full four and a half minutes, it evolves with layering vocals and guitar, whilst the percussion keeps the song grounded and organised among the ever-compounding layers. The production is well-balanced, clearly very carefully adjusted to allow the piece to achieve such smooth progression.
The single builds into a final loud amalgamation of parts previously introduced in the song, and repeated lyrics “I’m not wrong, I’m not wrong”, almost in a chant. It is easy to imagine this being played live to a bustling audience - the song screams ‘life’. The overlapping vocals break through the buzzy, distorted guitar like a ray of sun, reaching a point that almost feels like positivity in an otherwise heavy song. Horsetalk are clearly a group of talented musicians and narrative lyricists, and are a band to keep a close eye on as they progress through the greater live scene network..