With riffs funky enough to get you on your feet and a sound that isn’t too far removed from local indie heroes Gang of Youths, US rockers Captiva have just released their debut self-titled E.P, and it’s one that could easily be the soundtrack to your festive season parties.
Hailing from Kansas City, Missouri, Jackson Ries (vocals, guitar), Pat McQuaid (guitar, vocals), Nick Riffle (bass) and Hank Wiedel (drums) teamed up with Tim Gutschenritter (National Fire Theory) and producer Jeremy Wilson (Temple Sounds) to create their debut EP, with plans to get straight back to work in January for their debut album Basement Creations. You can stream it in full below!
Hailing from Kansas, Missouri, USA come Captiva bearing the gift of a brand new self-titled EP, which sees the band exploring a dual songwriting dynamic with spectacular results.
Ries and McQuaid formed the band two and a half years ago after meeting in high school, along with drummer Wiedel. After gaining attention within the grounds of their college campus, Captiva set straight to work in making a name for themselves in their local club scene. Since then, they have scored some pretty impressive slots on SXSW, Audiofeed Festival, Backwoods Music Festival and national tour supports for Twenty One Pilots and The Lonely Biscuits – two fellow acts who are killing it in the States right now. In total Captiva have already played sixty shows together, an impressive feat for such a young band.
All four songs on the self-titled release are brand new material and quite different to the bands previous releases. The EP is made up of two songs written by Ries and two songs written by McQuaid, resulting in a striking indie-rock combo definitely worthy of a spin.
Road To Ruin, written by Ries about the journey to fame, opens up the EP with a funky riff and features elements of blues-rock with vocals that are as smooth as the song’s rock groove. Stimulating Freeze, written by McQuaid, showcases a softer, more intimate side of the band while the closing tracks Chemicals and Sometimes are your tracks-to-chill-to.
It’s easy to tell that Ries and McQuaid have different writing styles, but like a puzzle with each shape being different from the next when the songs on the EP listened to in succession it seems to all make sense. McQuaid has been quoted as saying that he would like for the band’s music to be like a vacation, and a place where people can escape to and just chill out for a while. I can safely say, mission accomplished.
These boys know how to write a catchy tune and you should definitely chuck this EP into your holiday season stash of music to check out.
