Drawing us in with an astral frequency and a rolling crescendo of soft drums with a subtle guitar fuzz, expanding with an almost 8-bit electric riff, Craig Small Music and Peter Shilling open The Wolf with conceptual lyrics and metaphorical depth.
We immediately connect with the journey that we are being taken on and the dimensional soundscape which taps into a cerebral, yet meditative energy. As for the message of the song, The Wolf is built around a powerful narrative of transformation and revenge.
It tells the story of The Wolf as a human character who is ultimately reimagined as a fierce female protagonist – she is inspired by a 1990s Japanese anime. Lyrically, it channels notions of strength, retribution and awakening. This gives the character a sense of mystery and emotional intensity.
Musically, we learn that The Wolf draws from influences such as Red Hot Chili Peppers, Faith No More, U2, Bush, Depeche Mode, a-ha, Aerosmith, Tommy Emmanuel and Soundgarden, which we can feel come through, although there is no doubt that Craig Small Music and Peter Shilling are creating a unique sound of their own, as well as their own conceptual universe.
We learn that Craig Small Music, based in Katoomba, Australia, is the driving force behind The Wolf. The song, in fact, began over ten years ago as an instrumental demo by Peter Shilling, created in GarageBand no less!
Craig Small later added lyrics and melody, reshaping the track completely. Recording took place across several months at The Kill Room studio on the South Coast NSW and SmallSongs studio in the Blue Mountains.
Needless to say, we are captivated by the concept and could imagine the track being turned into a movie in its own right. We have added The Wolf to our New Music Spotlight playlist, and our TIMELESS playlist, whilst we continue to stream Craig Small Music‘s debut single, Sunkiss.