Cats Are Black
Fortitude Valley, Queensland, Australia | SELF
Music
Press
When I first heard about this gig there were two questions that instantly popped into my head: a) I wonder if Mat McHugh and the Black Birds will play any of The Beautiful Girls songs, and b) who the hell are Cats of Black??
To my surprise, the majority of the crowd had already arrived for the evening, with 100-or-so people mingling comfortably around The Zoo, it became obvious that tonight was going to be an intimate laid-back gig, with the crowd comprising a small group of big Beautiful Girls supporters.
Cats are Black kicked of the show, with singer Matty Woo holding a guitar that looked much too big for his small frame, accompanied by drummer Andy. They began with a warm tune that was quite a different and unique sound in an acoustic/indie/blues/country sort of way.
For the second song, a stunning girl called Frankie entered the stage (who we soon found out was the girlfriend of drummer Andy, and Andy was the brother of lead singer Matty Woo.) “It’s all in the family,” Matty joked, before pointing out his charming mum in the crowd, who gave a little curtsy. The next song was more intense and polished than the first, with Frankie singing powerful yet sweet backup vocals accompanied by a tambourine. Frankie did appear to be a little timid, perhaps from stage fright, however this added to her innocent disposition. At this point in time Andy rocked an amazing drum solo, and instantly the music starting sounding more heavy and commanding.
Matty introduced himself as Mat McHugh’s tour manager, and explained how it was spontaneously decided newly formed Cats are Black would support the tour, writing the songs just a week ago! It was impossible to tell these well crafted songs had been whipped out of the air only days ago, but explained why previous Google and Myspace searches returned no results for the band.
As the songs continued they sounded more and more country-like, with the final tune a lot slower, showing more character and emotion than the others. Matty finished the set with some intense vocal solos, proving the diversity and dominance in his voice. - fasterlouder.com.au
Discography
And Then We Were Snow - Unreleased EP
Cats Are Black
1. The Beaver Trail Leads To Wine Country
2. Mary
3. Shadows
4. Holding Out
Photos
Bio
Just a few short months ago Cats Are Black were conjured up from the shadows. Pulling melodies from the out of the dusty night sky, Matty Woo wrote a handful of songs in the space of a few weeks and four days after their first full band rehearsal, Cats Are Black were touring nationally in support of Mat Mchugh and The Black Bird. In these, their very first shows, folks became bewitched. Two months later they were recording, inside a water tank, up on the halcyon hills above Tweed Heads, capturing the songs that had hidden in the heart of Matty Woo for so long. Four months after their birth, they graced the stage of the Metro in Sydney as Ash Grunwald's main support.
Two brothers and a sweetheart, Cats Are Black sing songs of lives lived and journeys taken, of getaways and of comings home. There is dust on their paws and snow in their whiskers. Cats Are Black will take you to the lonely places. There they’ll put a blanket around your shoulders and a fire at your feet. They’ll sail you down a whiskey river and they’ll try to raise the devil in you.
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