There’s something immediately warm and nurturing with CMAT’s music - that much has been made evident with her two last songs. With her new single, I Wanna Be A Cowboy, Baby!, the feeling remains the same, even rather heightened. In fact, everything about this track feels like a step up from her previous work. From the melodies, to the overall feel of the tune, CMAT’s newest single paved her a bright future, if her other songs hadn’t already done that.

The first immediately gripping aspect of this song is CMAT’s beautifully gritty vocals. Like her previous song, Rodney, the lack of tuning adds so much to the depth of the song, in a sea where all vocals must be as pitch perfect as possible. This makes the tune stand out all the much more, not within her discography, but rather within her contemporaries. The natural feel of the instrumentation, delivered by the distinct lack of overtly digital instruments, compliments her vocals in a way that can only be shown, rather than described. There’s something particularly indie about the band accompanying her, without ever being cheesy about it. The song also exudes quite a tangy vibe, which highlights the chorus all the much more (specifically the themes surrounding cowboys). Closing your eyes, you could almost picture this track playing in a modern-day saloon setting. Other than the aforementioned gimmicks and the stellar production, the song’s highlight is definitely its chorus. The melody and harmony is promised to be stuck in your head for a while after only a single listen; not in a haunting way, but rather like a craving. You want to hear the melody, and when it finally hits, boy, does it hit. There’s something quite melancholic about this track, and this aspect is highlighted the brightest during the chorus.

The song is surprisingly quite long for what it is, but that isn't evident at all while listening to it. Clocking just over five minutes, it shies away from being overtly radio-friendly, but its intrigue and accessibility makes I Wanna Be A Cowboy, Baby! both fun for casual listeners, and fascinating for music nerds. The layering is impressive, which can easily be discovered on multiple listens. The choir-like harmonies supporting the chorus, the small electric guitar licks and fills swimming across the soundscape, all of it contributes to how well realized this song has become.

I expected greatness when I learned CMAT was releasing her new single, after her last song Rodney grew on me quite a bit, but something of this calibre was quite a pleasant surprise. There are so many flavors of so many genres and inspirations to please just about any crowd, which makes my respect for the Irish singer grow ever so much bigger. This is a great listen for anyone in both happy and perhaps not-so-happy times, and promises only great things from CMAT.

Author: Nicholas Gaudet

Music producer and writer from Dieppe, Canada.