‘Gawjuss’ is the self-titled debut EP from Gawjuss, and Gawjuss is the solo vehicle of Kieran Wade Clarke of alt-rock indie act Forever Cult.
The press release describes it as ‘a woozy, dark set of songs’ which transpired after ‘too many nights without sleep in front of Garageband’ which led Kieran ‘to empty his head and create his debut EP’.
The four tracks on offer here definitely have a rather different vibe: not exactly downbeat, but edged with melancholic introspection, laid back but with mathy stop-start guitars as a dominant feature that gives the songs a bit of an edge.
‘Young Losers’ brings a Pavementy slackerism to proceedings, and closer ‘Pressure’ is probably the weakest of the bunch: the reverby production and nagging guitar is insistent and grabby, but there are just too many obvious 70s rock torpes behind the drawling vocals to strike a chord, despite the unexpected Cure-esque synths that emerge toward the end.
Still, three outta four ain’t bad, and ‘Gawjuss’ picks at some troubling emotions with an honesty that’s engaging and disarming.