Listen: Cheatahs – “Leave To Remain”

Thrilling new single, ”Leave to Remain”, from London-based quartet Cheatahs, demonstrates that you overlook them at your own peril.

Despite being drawn to London from near (Leicester) and far (Edmonton, San Diego; and Dresden, Germany) the quartet clearly bonded over making the sort of sprawling, noisy pop music that Dinosaur Jr, My Bloody Valentine and the like made their names with some two decades before.

Taken from their debut self titled album, out now on Wichita Recordings, “Leave to Remain” is the musical equivalent of getting punched in the face and still leaving you smiling. Raw and aggressive but blissed and melodic out right from the off, it owes much to the early-90s era of shoegaze: harmony-laden slacker vocals submerged in pulsating waves of feedback-soaked guitar noise. It’s painfully beautiful. The single, “Leave To Remain”, is out on 5 May.

Cheatahs have also just headed out for dates across the US and Europe, but you can catch them on their return at Live at Leeds 2014 on 3 May, or at the 100 club, London on 21 May.