Rattle

Nottingham based drumming duo Rattle preset their eponymous debut LP via Upset the Rhythm. Rattle focus almost exclusively on drums and more drums, beneath a delicate overlay of vocal harmonies and percussive effects. Formed by Katharine Eira Brown and Theresa Wrigley, Rattle began as an experiment in crafting rich songs and melody using drums and voice alone. Their music weaves and intertwines post-punk, minimalism and experimental rock through off-kilter rhythms, patterns and counter melodies. The duo formed by accident in Nottingham in 2011, where Katharine and Theresa knew each other from playing in other local bands. Katharine was a guitarist who had recently started playing drums in the band Kogumaza and Theresa is the enthralling drummer from Fists. They originally met up to skill swap guitars and drums but soon enough they found they were having more fun with a double drum set-up and started making the sound of their first song "Boom", which became a blueprint for their new band's sound. As Katharine explains; "It seemed obvious right from the start that nothing else was going to be required in terms of instruments." When it came to recording the album it made absolute sense to bring in their regular live sound engineer Mark Spivey (also of Kogumaza) who has been working closely with the band from the beginning. Live, he adds additional effects and manipulations from the sound desk and these techniques were transferred over to a studio setting at The Big Mouse House, in Sneinton, Nottingham. A lot of time and attention was taken to get the best sound possible from the drums in the room. Having mostly played in experimental or avant-rock settings, Rattle first discovered that they could make their awkward audiences dance with opening track "Trainer (Get You)", which was specifically designed to make the listener move in some way. Other songs embrace different moods, for example "Starting" has a sense of urgency and a repeated lyric phrase that becomes a mantra, and "Click" is more soothing and meditative. The hi-hat and cymbal hits in "Sorcerer" have a sword-fighting feel and "Stringer Bell" is more of a cocktail song from a 1950s city apartment. Often starting by picking out the ghost notes from the drums to develop a melody, the song then reveals itself in rounds and harmonies with layer upon layer of rhythm and vocal, lending a choral feel to some of the tracks. Rattle effortlessly blend the avant-garde with irresistible melodies and hypnotic drum beats, using rhythm and harmony to create a refreshing sound that is utterly new.