Jacob Slater mines gold in reflective Wunderhorse debut ‘Cub’
Wunderhorse, the alias and new project of musician and actor Jacob Slater, was conceived following the dissolution of his first band, Dead Pretties. On the surface, Slater had all he could wish for from his early 20s. Dead Pretties had record labels in the palm of their hand after showing off their potential with a handful of early tracks and a reel of riotous gigs. But inside, Slater had become detached, and his dreams felt further afield than ever.
“That life was what I wanted, and or at least that’s what I thought I wanted,” Slater recalled in a press release. “I was like, ‘I’m going to be in this band, and I have to have a lifestyle to match….’ It just wasn’t sustainable. It got dark quite quickly. I had to take myself out of that environment”.
Compounding this hedonistic blight, Slater knew deep down that the musical direction he had taken with Dead Pretties wasn’t where he felt creatively satisfied. The high-energy, distorted punk sound of Dead Pretties came with an expectation of a wild Iggy Pop stage persona that became uncomfortable on Slater’s shoulders as he realised his true calling was in a sound more melodic and introspective.
“I was tired of having to get up on stage and pretend I wanted to throw myself around and smash things up every night and sing these intense songs,” Slater said. “They were good songs, but I didn’t think we’d be able to transition into doing the more introspective music that I wanted to make. I thought it would just alienate people”.
After a period of hesitation, Slater made the difficult call to finish his work with Dead Pretties to focus on his physical and mental health and ultimately follow a path more befitting his creative dream.
“I stopped taking drugs, and I stopped the band. The two things seemed to go hand in hand. I thought if I carried on with the band, I wouldn’t be able to not keep doing that to myself,” he said. “There’s the old myth that you need to take a load of drugs to be really creative, but I was much more creative when I wasn’t taking drugs. I wanted to love that part of myself again, and I wanted to fall back in love with music again”.
After this challenging yet mature decision, Slater took some time out at his parents’ place in Hertford and then down to Cornwall for a season of surf instructing. In 2021, with cobwebs blown out of sight, Slater returned to music, his greatest passion.
The Wunderhorse project debuted in 2021 with the release of ‘Teal’, the first single to preview the magnificent Cub. The upbeat melody of the track meets Slater’s moody, Lou Reed-esque vocals that rise into frenzied, passionate choruses. If this first taste raised my eyebrow, the following three singles, ‘Poppy’, ‘17’ and ‘Butterflies’, demanded undivided attention; Slater was undoubtedly onto something exciting.
Before the arrival of the full album, our ears were blessed with five singles that project the full diversity of Slater’s musical scope and creative vision. In ‘Poppy’ and ‘Butterfly’, Slater showed a well-balanced change in pace from the more upbeat singles like ‘Teal’ and ‘17’.
Upon listening to the album in full, any worries about impressive singles concealing bland fillers were cast to the wind. Through absorbing and poetic lyrics, Slater takes us on an evocative journey through the peaks and troughs of his adult life thus far, whether it’s 17-year-old parties (‘17’), poignant sexual encounters (‘Butterflies’) or addiction struggles (‘Morphine’).
Cub is one of the most honest and well-balanced albums I’ve heard in a long time. I do not recommend the album for background listening; this is a work of stark artistic reflection void of dullness that deserves an engaged listen. It’s definitely one for the turntable if you’re a budding vinyl junkie.
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