The Cat Empire have revealed their newly reconfigured performing line-up, sharing the news alongside the release of a single titled ‘Thunder Rumbles’.
In September of 2021, founding frontman Felix Riebl and multi-instrumentalist Ollie McGill announced that the band (as it existed then) would be dissolved, making way “for a new incarnation of The Cat Empire to come to life”. They played their final show with that line-up at last year’s Byron Bay Bluesfest.
Riebl remains The Cat Empire’s core creative force; alongside him and McGill, the band now features bassist Grace Barbé, drummer Daniel Farrugia (who previously toured with them in 2018) and percussionist Neda Rahmani.
In a press release, Riebl said of the band’s first release with their new line-up: “It’s got all the elements (and then some) of a Cat Empire classic. A New Orleans-y sousaphone kicks it off, makes its way to a stadium Latin break in the middle, then keeps flying from there. It’s brass-heavy (played by The Horns Of Leroy), drum-heavy, and high drama. The lyrics are more or less a brawl of celebration.”
Have a look at the accompanying music video for ‘Thunder Rumbles’ – directed by Nick Campbell and produced by Josh Harris, with creative direction from Giulia McGauran – below:
On the making of the clip, Riebl said the experience brought him and the band “a lot of laughter”, describing the shoot as “wall-to-wall (bluescreen) fun down the lens of a single camcorder”. He gushed that it was brought to life with “a great crew” and “heaps of colour and dynamics”, which led to “a real throwback to clips from the ‘80s [and] ‘90s”.
Riebl continued: “It also introduces a lot of visuals and themes from the [artwork for The Cat Empire’s as-yet-unannounced ninth album]. Welcome to the world of ‘Thunder Rumbles’. Let the lightning strike!!!!”
Expounding on the video’s concept, Campbell said in his own statement: “I wanted to capture the energy of a Cat Empire show, smashing together footage in a vibrant, freewheeling collage. Something about the way the image falls apart just felt right, like a David Byrne video from the ‘80s.
“It was a really fun set to be on, the song is a joyous romp, and it was important that came across on camera. The rest of the band was just out of frame, cheering on whoever we were filming.”
As for how the band’s new members gelled with the process of recording ‘Thunder Rumbles’, Rahmani said the track was simply “too much fun to record”. She praised “the atmosphere in the studio” as “epic”, noting that she particularly enjoyed “joining so many Melbournian brass and percussion [players], with the core Cat Empire band members rocking through to steer and bless the track”.
Rahmani added: “My name actually means ‘thunder’ in Farsi (language in Iran, where I was born) so this song is very special to me.”
The Cat Empire will also perform at this year’s Bluesfest, as well as a handful of other dates around Australia later this month – see here for all of their upcoming gigs.
Meanwhile, last November saw Riebl release his third solo album, ‘Everyday Amen’.