RELEVANT TRACK: Whyte Horses – ‘The Snowfalls’
Courtesy of Nikhil Kanukuntla
Not much is known about the Mancunian band ‘Whyte Horses’, a group espoused to relative secrecy; with hazy delineations regarding its line-up and history. Even the vocals of the track are oddly androgynous and somewhat foreign, belonging to a time and place tremulously set. Haziness and uncertainty are – quiet conveniently – themes covered in this single; a summer track about leaving winter.
Exploring the subcontinental roster of indie pop with its quirky instrumentation and dewy-eyed imagery, ‘The Snowfalls’ conveys a real sense of ‘reminiscence’- akin to the vintage filters one finds on Instagram. With choruses involving “Just keep on running”, a pertinent line that blends with its soft, tangential “aahs” swimming beneath. It is a mainstay of the bootless, wispy air of its lyrical style, which harks methods ranging from french bubblegum pop to early 60s Psychedelic Folk guitar. And that this new, empyrean single has been crafted from a “sojourn in the heart of the Italian countryside” is an exciting outlook on the machinations of sound-crafting that many bands encounter mid-way through their careers. This fact also adds a metaphorical sense to the songwriting, which at surface level seems lackluster and bloated; a curse many indie pop bands (see Noah And The Whale) never truly seem to overcome.
By far the most interesting part of the track arrives at the 2:37 mark, with the words “everyday the same old song, you’ve got to let me go” blazing out in similar slackerette fashion. This is perhaps a display of the rare sense of self-awareness that Whyte Horses show as subsequently the instrumentation goes all out along with its faux-sitar-like solos and Ringo Starr-esque drum rolls over the same lupine “aahs”.
Despite the tintinnabulation of its melodies, ‘The Snowfalls’ is a delightful, shimmering single- an ode to uncertainty in all its anonymity. Expect this to be a governed single leading onto a promising future LP.
The snow falls only in their beloved Manchester, and a stay in the Italian countryside allows them to play with their irony. After all, it’s not everyday the same old song.
‘The Snowfalls’ is the first fruit from the forthcoming debut album from Whyte Horses and will be berthed into public consciousness via CRC Music on 22nd September 2014.
