Catlea – Bones

Catlea – Bones – EP Review

Believe me when I tell ya, I’ve seen the numbers…the last thing that Catlea needs from me is any kind of confirmation – this lady is already a bona fide world superstar in the making y’all!  She’s recently dropped the Bones EP, which is comprised of three pre-released singles and the title-track, which is the brand-new cut of the four from what I can tell.  Every single song that she’s dropped in advance of this record has found its way comfortably into six-digit terrain on Spotify alone – and if you’re asking me, it’s gonna be “Bones” that likely propels her to smash any previous milestones that she’s set.  Given that this is my first experience with her music, all four cuts were brand-new to me – but rest assured, from the moment that I pushed play and heard “Bones” coming back at me through the speakers, I didn’t need the numbers at Spotify to tell me what I could already hear – Catlea has got the X factor, 100%.

No joke folks!  Feel free to take the bait and challenge yourself to prove me wrong – in fact, I freakin’ DARE YOU to push play and try it!  Within…lemme see here…yup – LESS than ten seconds of hearing “Bones” begin, you’ll probably know what I’m talkin’ about and why I’m so ecstatic about what I hear.  The instantaneous catchiness of the music…the brilliance of Catlea’s vocals…”Bones” immediately reveals the complete and total package as the song begins, and by the time you reach the chorus, there is simply no going back – you’ll be a fan just like I am, and quite probably for LIFE.  So be prepared for that, and don’t say I didn’t warn ya!  “Bones” is dripping with single-worthy sound & star power, and you couldn’t possibly miss it.  Those of you regular readers out there know that I don’t just rubber stamp everything I hear…I’m relentlessly objective, constructively critical, and I do my best to provide the artists and bands that come my way with any insights I might have to help assist them with their own growth and evolution.  With having said that, we’re talking about a song – AND EP – where I’m practically speechless.  I heard “Bones” for the very first time and was ready to call the whole game – Catlea is a straight up ten outta ten, no notes situation.  You can see from the current counter on our main homepage that I’ve heard just a FEW songs in my lifetime and that it implies I’m older than dirt – both of these things are true – so take it to heart when I tell ya, “Bones” is one of the easiest songs to like or love that I’ve heard this year, and I’m just as positive about YOU having the same reaction.  Her title track is a highlight example of perfectly crafted Pop, and the execution is simply second to none.  If I sound ridiculously overwhelmed by how EXCITED I seem to be about this track, I assure you it’s only because I AM.  You truly don’t run into this kind of sensational superstar talent every day, and from the professionalism, poise, and instincts that Catlea displays as she sings “Bones,” you really can’t help but feel like you’ve been lucky enough to stumble on world-class talent that can’t stay secret much longer.

It’s more than just good material to work with, it’s all about the performances Catlea puts into these songs that completely turns them from good to great each and every time.  As I listened to “Crumbling” and the way that the stage gets set by the humble sweetness of a piano at the start, to the way that it shifts into trend-setting uniqueness and jaw-dropping larger-than-life Pop you’ll want to keep at the top of your playlists, you gotta be able to recognize the sound of an artist on the cutting edge when you hear one…and that is exactly what Catlea IS.  You hear the confidence she projects and the surgical precision that she sings with…honestly, it’s straight-up extraordinary by every conceivable definition.  If I had any doubts about how I felt about her after listening to “Bones” (which I didn’t have…not one, not any) than “Crumbling” would have been all the confirmation my ears would have needed to know what I heard wasn’t any kind of fluke – she is the REAL DEAL y’all.  So the way I see it is this…you can hop aboard the bandwagon NOW while there’s still enough room to squeeze into the space, or you can risk being way behind the rest of us and beg to catch a ride later on down the road.  I’ll put it to ya this way – the last time I felt this sure about anything Pop-related in the independent music scene, I was listening to PRINS for the first time back in 2018.  Think about that for a second.  That’s how RARE this level of exceptionalism and star power tends to be inside this genre…there are lots of good artists, and there is a whole bunch of good music out there…but to hear someone that has what Catlea has going for her, is so extremely special and undeniably rare to the point where it barely exists at all…it’s mythical – and when you hear it, you know how special it is.  Incidentally, PRINS has gone on from being the queen of New Zealand to tour the globe internationally, and she has carved out an incredible career for herself – she’ll never go back to a 9-5 job, and she is STILL on her way UP.  If Catlea has even an ounce of the same kind of determination to rival the natural talent she possesses, which I fully suspect that she does…then she’s in for the same ride on the same kind of stratospheric trajectory…and I am HERE. FOR. IT!  I absolutely love what I’m hearing on “Crumbling,” and again, there’s already six-digit’s worth of people that feel like I do.  Catlea has amassed a full-on army of support out there, and has the voice of a generational talent.

It’s about nuance more than anything else y’all…that’s what I’m talkin’ about here, and why I’m as excited as I am.  Is Catlea going to go on to write even better material than she’s already written here on this EP?  Of course!  I’m tellin’ ya – she’s still on the early side of her career, yes – but my point is that she clearly has a grip on the kind of details that make the difference & lead to longevity in this business.  Listen to “Lying” for example…lord knows hundreds of thousands of other people already have…you’ll hear in the way that she sings that she brings the right energy, inflection, and tone to every moment.  Each of these things are ultimately a skill of their own when it comes right down to it, and it’s the fact that she is able to wield them all so professionally at once, or use them individually when the song is calling out for her to enhance a moment…that’s the kind of nuance that will set her apart from the rest.  I’m even telling you this from the perspective of a fan that likes all four of these tracks, but might have “Lying” in the fourth spot on my list of favorites from this record – Catlea is STILL awesome, and that’s a reflection of the natural talent she’s got for the game y’all.  I get the feeling that she could roll right outta bed and fall onto a song, you know what I mean?  There are so very few times where I feel as certain as I do about this artist right here…lots of great music out there, as I’ve mentioned, but when you hear someone that has all the pieces they need to succeed and could very well go on to change the landscape of the music-scene we share, that’s a whole different story.  “Lying” almost has the advantage over the rest of the songs in this set in the sense that it’s a lot more reliant on her voice alone, with a more threadbare design in the mix & music that doesn’t take too much of the spotlight off of her…it’s her star power that fuels the clicks & plays on a cut like this one.  She can absolutely carry the weight when she’s called upon to do so, and what’s there in the music I do enjoy, but examples like you’ll hear in the combinations she’s working with on “Bones” or “Crumbling” are going to end up being the real breakthrough moments and milestones in her catalog.  “Lying” is still a fantastic song in its own right, don’t get it twisted – but sure, if you want me to be as objective as I always am, it’s the three tracks that surround it that probably pique my personal interest a bit more & get to the heart of her true potential.

I’ll tell ya about something that really gives me some damn HOPE about the way other people listen to music though y’all…and that’s the fact that as of the time I’ve written this review, it’s actually “Like Me” that is the current reigning champ in the world according to Spotify.  It ain’t gonna be long before this particular song crosses the threshold of that million-mark on this one platform alone, and to be truthful with ya, I don’t know that I would have predicted that.  It’s a really well-crafted song that totally deserves to be recognized as such, but with such a delicate vibe in comparison to the rest, you’d likely assume it would have had a tougher time catching on than the rest of the material surrounding it.  I do feel like we can hear that it could still possibly use a bit more oomph in the production, again by comparison to the rest…you’ll hear “Like Me” spark to life for the final minute and give you a sensational finale, but the flipside of that coin is that you’ll kind of feel like the beginning three minutes sounds a little thin when you go back for that second and third spin.  I really dig what Catlea’s going for here though, so don’t get me wrong – “Like Me” is a brilliantly well-written song…you’ll hear her literally blossom right in front of your ears as she goes from a humble & innocent beginning to the magic of a full-on musical by the time it’s all over.  Essentially, the distance she travels on this inside of this one experience takes her further than the rest do by comparison…and her lyricism her is nothing short of award-worthy.  Love the way she sings this song and how Catlea has such a gift for finding the right gear & energy to use her voice…love the way that the finale is designed, and I feel like she picked the perfect song to finish off her debut record and have us all running to repeat the entire set-list all over again.  I’m sure you get how I feel about Catlea and the Bones EP by now…but in case you’ve somehow missed it, lemme shout it out one last time for the people in the back – THIS IS ONE OF THE BEST ARTISTS YOU’LL FIND IN ANY CORNER OF THE POP REALM THIS YEAR, WITH A FUTURE SO BRIGHT IT’LL BLIND YOU.

I said what I said.

Find out more about Catlea from this handy multilink here:  https://linktr.ee/catleacreates

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