Wow! Outrun the Buffalo should be the next BIG THING in New Zealand music. That’s how impressed I was with their new EP But Now They Live In A Zoo.
This is one impressive package, even more so if you like pictures of zebras – you’ll find plenty of them in the professional looking CD cover.
But it’s the music that counts, so let’s dive in for a look. There are five tracks of something I’m going to call progressive electro-rock-funk here and there’s not a single bad tune out of the lot. They start out a bit Mars Volta-ish on the first track, all menacing synths and airy vocals, before funking it up, almost like Franz Ferdinand, but with that menacing undertone throughout.
Each track melds perfectly into the next one – this could be held up as a textbook example of how to create flow in your album. All too soon you’re at the last track, and my personal favourite, One For Them, listening to how puppets on strings are “creepy little things” and wishing you could hear it all again. Which is probably why I ended up leaving it on repeat for most of the day, something I don’t do often with new CDs – it’s that good kids.
Outrun the Buffalo are an Auckland based band lead by Calvin Davidson and Tim Burrows. Since forming in late 2010, Outrun the Buffalo have been writing and developing their unique sound whilst firmly establishing themselves on Auckland's gigging circuit.
Outrun the Buffalo describe their music as a delicious blend of Alternative Rock and Electronica. They combine driving guitar riffs and hard hitting synth lines with soaring ambience and vocal harmonies. Their writing draws upon a diverse number of influences ranging from Pink Floyd's epic
soundscapes, Led Zeppelin's free flowing jams, Radiohead's eerie electronica, and Bon Iver's soft acoustic harmonies. Combined with a solid background in classical and blues music, Outrun the Buffalo are creating a sound of their own.