Fuzz-rock throwdowns and the cosmic frontier: Little Strange’s quasi-western ‘Red Moon Rises’
The band share their debut EP.
Photo: Ella Roberts
“If you’re a fan of the ‘Red Dead Redemption’ score, this one’s for you.” So writes Jamie Thompson, vocalist and songwriter for Mancunian four-piece Little Strange, on the release of their debut EP, Red Moon Rises. It’s an album drenched in frontier symbolism and Tarantino fuzz, conjuring images of rolling, sand-soaked plains.
Red Moon Rises has shades of R.E.M.’s rockier endeavours and Queens of the Stone Age-infections, galloping and hee-yah-ing across soundscapes of fleeting stone monuments, blackened skies and drawling gunslingers. Lead single Ride is a perfect example, with nuanced guitar and endlessly listenable chorus.
Album tracks like Red Moon Rises and Waiting for the Sun consolidate the suite’s alt-rock vibe, plugged into the vein of Noel Gallagher and the High Flying Birds’ Chasing Yesterday — but it’s quieter, more thoughtful moments like Fight Against the Dark and closer Red Sunrise that give Little Strange’s release an esoteric feel; making for a quasi-concept album set in the galactic frontier. It’s western-meets-cosmic alt rock, achieving such a feel without ever sounding disjointed, or like a record made by committee. Ride is undoubtedly the best of the bunch, but the whole rodeo is worth a listen, no doubt paving the way for future expeditions to the wild west in the form of a longer LP or, dare I say it, live affair.
Red Moon Rises by Little Strange is an intriguing nova of genres, putting this Manchester four-piece firmly on the map. As they themselves proclaim: the Strange have arrived. God help the poor souls looking to duel with them.
Red Moon Rises is out now.