Cat Jahnke (’yä[ng]-kE)
Cat Jahnke’s musical evolution has played out in a very linear fashion: from “Twinkle, Twinkle” on the upright as a child to composition classes in university; from girl with the six-string to front man for the band; from misguided boy to imperfect gentleman and the inspirational heartbreak that trudges in the wake.
In the spirit of a true prairie girl raised in a landscape that allows a clear view for miles, Cat’s fate has been evident for her twenty-six years. Yet the words and tunes she fuses are never so straightforward. While her first album, Cathartic, was intentionally dark and cryptic, Cat’s latest release, None Of Those Things, attempts to strike a more accessible balance between her fondness for double meanings and a dedication to candor, if often disguised. Using simple words, she repeatedly leads the listener to one idea and then drives the opposite conclusion home.The title track invites the audience to pine for lost loves, for lost paths and for lost friends because “None of those things quite existed anyway”. The theme of Tricky is suggested by its name and underlined by its chorus (”You just can’t deny that look in your eye / It’s love and it’s here to stay / Don’t you dare lie, just confess so that I / Can pack my bags and be on my way”). Even the final words of the album, the denouement of Pocket Full Of Sand, nearly placate but are ultimately shrouded (”I can’t leave you / I can’t leave you / And how could I leave you / You’re already gone”).