In a follow-up to their January single ‘It’s The Squeeze’, Bradford quintet Dog Race have just released delightfully ghoulish new track ‘The Leader’. The band has maintained something of an elusive presence over the last few years. With four singles released, they have drawn attention to their sound with a number of live shows across London, in addition to support slots with several bands including Fat Dog and Maruja. ‘The Leader’ has a freakish avant-garde quality. A kaleidoscopic mix of bleary gothic rock textures and dark synthpop with vocals that swing between twitchy, haunting whispers and urgent exclamations, it feels erratic and eager. You can sense inspiration from the likes of The Cure with fierier, punk-rock dynamics and less lovesickness. In the accompanying music video (which could easily double as a teaser for an A24 cult horror film), vocalist Katie Healy is shown making a journey to dig her own grave, just to soon be buried alive. Her death rattle is a final cry of the song’s zappy chorus line – ‘I’ve got a meeting with the leader!’ Speaking on the track, Healey has said that ‘The Leader’ “sets its narrative around a protagonist who is thrown into turmoil when confronted with a fee to cross into the afterlife, convinced she has already paid her dues.” Something about being thrown into Dog Race’s depiction of turmoil has an addictive quality to it. For anyone that craves a bit of excitement and chaos, this is a band that knows how to deliver. -Kayla Sandiford