Listen: Salt Cathedral – “Good Winds”

There’s something truly magical about a song that can capture you from the opening few seconds to then transform into a wildly different beast by the closing few bars. It’s almost like a rollercoaster you’ve never been on; you don’t yet know the twists and turns that you’re about to shoot headlong into but, boy, do you want to find out where it’s going to go. The new single from Brooklyn four piece Salt Cathedral is exactly that.

“Good Winds” is not one that’s going to give everything up to your straight away. The opening minute or so is mainly a simple drum beat, soft synths and Juliana Ronderos’ bewitching vocals. It’s so simple but instantly magnetic, reminiscent of a quiet, gentle Feist track. But then suddenly, without warning, it starts to splutter and creak into its actual form; a real future-pop triumph that nicely sits alongside anything BRAIDS have ever done.

Drum machine fills, intertwining vocal tracks, and scattered synths pile on top of one another. Ronderos’ vocals shine but so does everything else clustered around it in equal measure. It feels like an intricate jigsaw puzzle, fragmented at first but then, as everything starts to find its place, the end result is a beautifully magical track. It’s a far cry from their Foals-esque previous work, and proof that breaking the mould is a great thing.