Cloud Castle Lake stream debut ‘Dandelion’ EP in full

It’s hard to track exactly where Daniel McAuley is going with his deceptive, dancing falsetto. The same goes for his bandmates. Cloud Castle Lake - even on the space of a debut EP - aren’t exactly the most static of bands. When a new ideas bounces between them, it’s grabbed in an instant, lodged in a back pocket and taken to the hills.

The Dublin trio’’s first work is ‘Dandelion’, a release that checks in with Radiohead’s frenetic percussion, or Sigur Ros when they’re not backed by an army of strings. McAuley brings in those comparisons with his delivery, which attempts to oversee - or at least keep some control of - the bedlam that’s ensuing in the background.

‘A Wolf Howling’ is a vicious clash of tense guitar parts and grand, space-oriented build. ‘Mothcloud’, meanwhile, brings gutsy intentions into a quieter corners (although no less dramatic), with closer ‘Dandelion’ making an on-paper simple, acoustic number seem like some product of the alien race. Blending natural elements with an outward-thinking ethos, Cloud Castle Lake prove they’re not just any other band, by a long stretch.

‘Dandelion’ is streaming full below, exclusively on DIY.

It’s released on 22nd September through Happy Vally Records.

Catch Cloud Castle Lake live at Dublin Whelan’s (20th September) and London’s Sebright Arms (25th September).