Watch Out for Wunderhorse: An Interview with Jacob Slater

Live, Laugh, Love Wunderhorse

Interview by Emma Bowen, Edit and Photos by Miyuki Wang

It's been three months since I saw Wunderhorse for the first time when they opened for Sorry in YES, Manchester and I haven't stopped thinking about them ever since. Back then, I only knew 'Teal' which my friend made me listen to when we were travelling to see Fontaines D.C. in Europe last spring but I was instantly hooked when he started playing 'Poppy,' the first track from their set. Their performance was dashing with sheer energy and I remember thinking that the stage that they were on in Manchester was too small - I had no idea at the time that I would see them again at Iveagh Gardens in the crisp air of Dublin city sky soon after that.

Intensity and tenderness are balanced in a unique way in Wunderhorse's amazing grungy-shoegazey tunes and guitar-heavy, dynamic performance. While Jacob Slater, the frontman of the band who shouts a lot and jumps a lot on stage looks like he has something simmering within him and he needs to perform in order to let it all out, there is also a sentimentality and nostalgia within their melodious tracks. It was a pleasant surprise to know that Fontaines and Sam Fender whom I love dearly also find Wunderhorse the next big thing and it was great to see the band supporting their gigs in July.

Wunderhorse is currently on the road with Fontaines in America and they will be on for their UK/Ireland tour this winter as well. The scene will soon be all set for them with their debut album Cub coming out tomorrow, October 7th. We simply could not wait for the album, so we sent a few questions via email about the band, the album and inspirations to Jacob who kindly answered them mid-tour. Here's a short interview (and a bit of annotation) for you while you all patiently wait for the clock to tick midnight.

Wunderhorse opening for Sorry at Jazz Cafe in London (2022/06/21)

――Where did your band name originate from?

It came to me one day whilst walking the dog (1).

(1) In another interview, he told the interviewer Clementine Zawadzki from Hero Magazine that the name Wunderhorse came from 'an old TV show from the 50s or 60s called Champion the Wonder Horse' whose part he spelt with a 'u' as a joke so that everyone would think he's German.

――What has been your music industry experience prior to Wunderhorse - how did you get into music? What led to the creation of this new project?

I left home at 17 and came to London to find the band members that would make up my first band, Dead Pretties (2). That ended after a few years and I started Wunderhorse with some old friends from school and a couple others I met along the way.

(2) Jacob's former post-punk band Dead Pretties was thriving in the underground scene in South London until they suddenly announced the end of the band in 2017. Jacobs has told NME that 'it just ran its course.' While it is true that they were not mentally and physically well as a band, Jacob also explains that the forceful and unruly Dead Pretties wasn't an 'appropriate vehicle' to play his music which was influenced by musicians such as Neil Young, Bob Dylan and Joni Mitchell.

――Is this a solo project or something you're doing as a group?

It started off as a solo project but is now very much a group (3).

(3) His bandmates are Pete Woodin, Jamie Staples and Harry Fowler. According to him on The Rodeo Magazine, Harry is his old school friend and Pete used to go to the school nearby and was in Harry's band when they were kids.

Jacob with his band mates Harry, Jamie and Pete opening for Fontaines D.C. at Iveagh Gardens in Dublin, Ireland (2022/07/05)

――What do you think of the support you've received so far? How has it been opening for Fontaines D.C. and Sam Fender?

It's very special when another musician/band recognises and appreciates the music you're making and involves you in what they're doing; Sam (4) and the Fontaines (5) boys have done a lot more for us than 90% of the industry lot ever have. Thanks boys.

(4) Rolling Stone has written that Cub shares a similar 'bold writing' that addresses 'the monsters of youth' with Sam Fender's Seventeen Going Under as it does not shy away from his younger self's 'early relationships and precocious mistakes.'

(5) Carlos O'Connell from Fontaines D.C. has chosen 'Teal' as one of the four songs that he loves and have inspired their newest album Skinty Fia. He has told Marcel Anders from Redbull that the reason why he is excited about Wunderhorse is that they are paying attention 'to the song, to the melody and harmony' unlike many other recent rock bands.

Wunderhorse opening for Fontaines D.C at Iveagh Gardens in Dublin, Ireland (2022/07/05)

――Your debut album is launching soon - how are you feeling about the release? What was it like creating this album?

We're all just excited to get it out into the world. I'm tired of having all those songs bouncing round my head, it's time to make them someone elses problem. Some of the earliest tracks were written in my teens, some were written in the studio when we were recording the album, so it spans quite a bit of time really, 17 (6) is the oldest track on the record for sure, Epilogue and Girl behind the glass were finished in the studio.

(6) Jacob wrote '17' when he was seventeen. He has told Clash Magazine that he made an attempt to change the lyrics since he has changed - he has 'simmered down,' compared to the way he was 'full-on rogue' as a home runaway - but it didn't feel right; those lyrics are what he was feeling at the time and he couldn't let it go of the words that were so ingrained in him.

――What inspires you creatively? Other artists that influenced you?

It's usually other people that inspire me these days. I read a lot so I guess that feeds into it too. I get a lot out of all kinds of music but I always seem to come back to the classics, Tom Waits, Bob Dylan, Joni Mitchell, Neil Young, the list goes on. (7)

(7) Jacob has told Guitar.com that he thinks Joni Mitchell is the real master of the tuning and his favourite electric guitarist is Neil Young.

―― Which artists are you listening to most at the moment?

Listening to a lot of Fontaines and Big Thief at the moment, John Prine is getting a fair few spins too.

―― What are your future plans as a band?

Keep making music of some description

Wunderhorse opening for Sam Fender at Castlefield Bowl, Manchester (2022/07/06)

―― Finally, the special ALD question - what's the best food you've had so far on your tour of America that we can't get here in the UK?

Alligator for sure. But stay away from Waffle House, I doubt I will recover in this life.

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Wunderhorse's debut album Cub will be out on Oct. 7th. Preorder here

Check out Wunderhorse on his Official Website, YouTube Channel, Spotify, Apple Music and Official Instagram.

Get tickets for Wunderhorse's headliner gig at Lafayette, London on October 20th.

Get tickets to see Wunderhorse supporting Fontaines D.C. on their UK & Ireland tour in November/December.

<Annotation References>

Anders, Marcel. "4 Songs that helped get Fontaines D.C. rocking." The Red Bulletin, 7 Sept. 2022.

Fynn, Jessica. "I'm Writing As A Kind Of Exorcism: Wunderhorse Interviewed." Clash Magazine, 21 Feb. 2022.

Kemp, Ella. "Wunderhorse: hard-won indie joy from shapeshifting surfer." NME, 28 Jul. 2021.

Kemp, Ella. "Wunderhorse: the storytelling songwriter on his debut album 'Cub'." Rolling Stone UK.

Prywell, Matthew. "Wunderhorse on meat puppets, Joni Michell's underappreciated technique, and striking out on his own." Guitar.com, 11 Feb. 2021.

Smith, Jessie. "Wunderhorse catches up with an old friend." The Rodeo Magazine, 30 Apr. 2022.

Zawadzki, Clementine. "Going Solo: Wunderhorse's Jacob Slater on simmering down but certainly not softening up." Hero Magazine, 28 Jul. 2021.