'Wanderer's Lust' by Cat Mead

If you enjoyed her run of three recent singles ("Fantasise With Me", "Sound of the Wolf" and "Society Anxiety") as much as I did, then you'll be chuffed to explore her new album ‘Wanderer's Lust' which not only contains this trio but eight more tracks in the shape of: "Basic Respect", "Fly and Float", "Allenby", "Come Back", "Wanderer's Lust", "Dignity, Integrity and Everything Inside Of Me", "Breadcrumbs" and "Don't Forget About Me". You've probably enjoyed her live performances of many of them given her many concerts: she is clearly a must for promoters & other artists.

Many too would point to the impact she has had on our local scene in the short time she's been part of it: not least in putting on classy gigs of her own devising. I totally agree with that but would suggest  that the relationship may be a little symbiotic given a sense of her surprise that she's made an album at all (not her original plan) and I suspect the warmth of her greeting by the local scene may have played a part. If so, she has certainly repaid that several times over.

Before diving into the songs, I'd like to test your patience with something I raise (too) often. Essentially I feel that the preference for single & EP releases over the traditional album format has been positive (I understand the financial drivers too!): each track gets much more attention, nothing gets lost in broader contexts & the phenomenon of the "filler" track has taken a welcome hit.

On the other hand, as I say from time to time, I speculate how albums of songs from artists used to devising the impact of singles might be for us to process? I sometimes fear emotional overload though I accept that taking a breather is much easier now than when vinyl LPs were the only option.

Cat, as previous reviews stated, is nothing if not an emotionally intense artist. Once again, our moral guardians have slapped the old "explicit" label on the opening track "Basic Respect" and presumably by extension, the album itself. Since I made the point already this week (in my review of the new YNES single) that being explicit is surely a virtue and that they actually mean "rude words" (by someone's definition), I'll not repeat that at length.

But this is strong, uncompromising material: not because there is a little swearing going down, but due to the depths of the human condition to which Cat escorts us. She doesn't mess around with putting her nor our sensitivities in cotton wool nor patronise us by holding back. You can have a look for platitudes but I defy you to succeed.

I'll come clean here: since the process of reviewing involves listening track by track: I've not yet played ‘Wanderer's Lust' through in one continuous listening session. I'm still not sure if I have the emotional resources so perhaps I may never do this. I don't worry about that.  If you can process all the songs one after another then I salute you. I can only imagine what Cat feels like after delivering a full set live.  of this sort of stuff.

The key to how this came together for Cat is possibly through instinct: letting her heart lead her. Consequently, the album not only wasn't planned in some calculated fashion, but has ended up including material she already had & songs she's written lately. I think what she has done is to use her taste & discretion to look through her body of work and to put together a collection which visits a range of emotional locations: which makes for an excellent structure. What I'm certain it isn't is some sort of constructed concept which while probably arriving at a similar destination, would be far less satisfying. No: each song on its own merits rings true & if there is variety, then it's not just because Cat has experienced varying emotions (most of us can claim that), it's because she is equally adept at capturing them and consequently over a period of time has written about the all.

And what a range. Many singer-songwriters seem comfortable sharing the introspective sides of their nature, but lust? No that doesn't crop up too often. Perhaps that just a bit too private for them: but not Cat. And that's fresh.

There is so much to unpack here that I'd better rein myself in a little before I end up writing one of my notoriously difficult to digest epics. So a few key points. Firstly, however dynamically she comes across on stage, she is very open about fundamental insecurities which many others might understandably keep to themselves. For example, you may remember that my first review of her was when she supported Ellie Gowers in December. At the time, I took her at face value for the talent she clearly was: what I didn't realise was that one reason I'd not encountered her before that night was that I was witnessing a key moment in her development of her self belief: in her own words "that gig was the absolute fuel to the fire for me. It felt like it was where I was meant to be". And the next thing you know she's been playing and creating prolifically. Obviously I'm pretty chuffed to have (accidentally) witnessed such a key moment but it brings into sharp perspective the frankly incredible fact that the Cat Mead we know and love has substantially been forged in an intense six month period.

I'm not sure that dynamic by itself accounts for the quality of the songs: she clearly had plenty of them before her epiphany & she obviously is a person of great reflective power in addition to her musical gifts. However can you imagine any of the releases, the singles or this album occurring without it? I frankly doubt if the urge to write so much since would have come either.

Whereas the likes of "Breadcrumbs" might well come from a perspective on the problems of low esteem, the presence of songs which not only embrace lust but anger & sorrow keep ‘Wanderer's Lust' from the pitfall of the introspective type artist which can all to easily topple into the pit of "please pity me because I feel sorrow for myself". And believe me listening to that sort of album let alone reviewing one can be pretty soul destroying.

I'd much rather listen to an artist exploring themselves than one who feels they are the complete edition. It helps that while Cat keeps it simple & real with her arrangements, with the help of producer Dan Barrie (who recorded it in Kenilworth: a someone born & bred there I'm pleased to finally write that down as I can't think I've used the town's name in many previous reviews) and neat subtle touches like her penchant for different tunings, the whole set doesn't all sound similar.

Anyone who can write a song called "Dignity, Integrity and Everything Inside Of Me" merits our respect: to me, while the three singles tend to demonstrate why Cat chose them for that format, this sort of thing is a quintessential album track: less of the immediate hooks, so it grows on you with greater stealth, nevertheless its message is complementary to the more assertive sounding songs and may, in its quieter resolve, overtake them in your mind in time.

This sense of dignified articulation is in fact another characteristic which emerges when playing through the songs. Cat maintains the higher ground in all situations by not losing her composure: her "angry" songs are surgically applied to problems & forensically taken down. Even the title track is sung this way. I can think of plenty of songs about lust (I bet you can too) but in hindsight, many of them seem to take the route of heavy breathing which can become a trifle cliched.

I think this approach is much more suited to a long term career too: Cat doesn't sound detached (far from it) but she does radiate control of her feelings & what she is conveying.

These are exciting times for her with all this progress in so short a time and in turn for us being on the receiving end of her creativity. Cat took the plunge into an extravagant journey and already has wrought change upon the world: she has been catalysed by new environments & new people and in turn sparked changes which would not otherwise have taken place. I doubt if she knows where she's going next but that's all part of true creativity & I am sure she has to go places artistically & physically that neither she nor I can imagine right now.