A danceable diatribe that throws in a slab of slamming riflfage for good measure, OKA is the first single by CATALAN. Ewen Friers’ lyrics tackle everything from indigenous history to social media fads alongside a groove-ridden bass line and a driving beat. The guitar sounds are shimmering and expansive but at times pointed and crushing. Inspired by Big Country, Why?, Crass, Les Savy Fav and The Knife, with nods towards lyricists such as Regina Spektor and Derek Zanetti, CATALAN creates a ‘Sandinista era’ Clash in the 2017 landscape! On the brink of the earth’s sixth mass extinction period, during the global rise of the popular right, with unchallengeable economic systems, cartoonish world leaders and a selfie epidemic, what will you dance to when the final curtain falls? …CATALAN! Releasing records since 2010, Ewen Friers operates under new alias CATALAN, creating world influenced music with an experimental and eclectic edge. Having spent the last seven years exploring the open road, with various bands and companions, Ewen Friers dedicated the early part of 2017 to condensing his experiences and interests into a thought provoking new musical project. With music written in France, lyrics in North America and the first single finished in London, CATALAN offers a danceable, groove ridden post punk with a social commentary bark intended to spark debate. There is an urgency to CATALAN - stuffed with lyrical imagery, juxtapositions and endless references CATALAN is a distraction from the social media haze, the self obsessive feeds and shamefully competitive nature of current popular culture. It is an antidote to the army of singer-songwriters, derivative cobweb rock and the bewildering hiss of the charts, a lens through which we might glimpse a more interesting world. CATALAN urges us to lift our heads from our smartphones and engage in meaningful conversation; CATALAN highlights the value of living in a reality where the human mind can be invigorated and so bring positive change.