Like the forest breeze this album blew right past us. Stratford, Ontario singer songwriter Cat Clyde’s sophomore record is building on the solid foundation of folky ballads and bluesy riffs but goes beyond the simplicity. The southern gothic vibe of ‘Bird Bone’ sets the tone for an emotional and soulful ride that Hunters Trance is.
Over all, the singer’s achingly beautiful vocals form a silver lining. She croons and howls like an old soul diva, with the kind of richness in her voice that usually only comes with maturity. And she knows how to cherish the special ring with stripped back instrumentation.
Hunters Trance is digging at the core, pushing all the unnecessary musical gravel aside to get to the deeply rooted rawness that is inherent to the swinging of vocal chords and steely guitar strings. Equally earthy are the lyrical poems Cat Clyde sings. From bird bones, to rocks and stones, to the ever-flowing river, the LP feels like a stroll through a forest. ‘All the Black’ and ‘Not Like You’ are melancholic ballads, situated somewhere between soul and folk that tug right at the heartstrings. The noir-style soul is dripping of emotion embedded in the slow dragging guitar melody as Cat Clyde mourns ‘this may be killing us but at least it kills the pain’.
Cat Clyde is a brand new artist out of Stratford, Ontario. A fresh take on the classic sounds of yesteryear; breathing new life into the velvety vocal, tack-piano, slide-guitar-style that can instantly walk you through the swinging doors of a packed saloon.
The Fat Angel Sings 