Little Barrie, singer/guitarist Barrie Cadogan and bassist Lewis Wharton, in collaboration with drummer Malcolm Catto, have shared their dynamic lead single “Zero Sun” from their upcoming Easy Eye Sound debut album, Electric War, available April 18. The new track arrives alongside its grainy, vintage VHS-style video–directed by Robert Schober that radiates with an effortless sophistication to match. "I had the idea of doing something with this groove for years. I’m not sure if you count in 3 or 6, I just like it. We jammed around it for a good hour in the studio until we got the feel,” says Cadogan of the song. “Me and Lewis keeping it minimal so Malcolm can play around it. The song came later. It’s about a mixture of things, old con artists, bleak English skies and waking up with the feeling you have a lot of obstacles to overcome, but then realising how much you have already achieved and to keep going. Ultimately the glass isn’t half empty, it’s more than half full."
Over a 20-plus year career, Little Barrie have proven themselves to be one of the UK’s most respected and resilient bands, cooking up a sound that blends elements of the ’60s British blues explosion, deep funk, hip hop, and the best rock n’ roll of the last six decades. Cadogan is one of the world’s most respected songwriters and guitarists, having worked on music for film and television that includes composing and performing the main title theme for Better Call Saul, and composing the soundtrack to the documentary Year Of The Dog. He’s also contributed to music for Hollywood releases–including Baz Luhrmann’s Elvis (featuring on “Cotton Candy Land” with Stevie Nicks & Chris Isaak), BBC drama Peaky Blinders–and has been the go-to guitar man for various legendary artists, including Primal Scream from 2006-2015, and more recently as a member of The The. Cadogan played guitar for Liam Gallagher at his historic 2022 sold out Knebworth shows and bass for Gallagher and John Squire’s 2024 world tour. All this along with an impressive CV of session work for the likes of Johnny Marr, Paul Weller, Morrissey, Spiritualized, and Edwyn Collins, among others.
A legendary leading figure of the UK’s underground funk, jazz and psych scenes for over three decades, Malcolm Catto worked with Jazzman Gerald on his Stark Reality label (who also released Little Barrie’s first single), and served as the master drummer for well-respected UK funk outfit The Soul Destroyers before forming The Heliocentrics along with fellow Soul Destroyer Jake Ferguson. Following the untimely passing of Little Barrie’s former drummer Virgil Howe in 2017, the band recruited Catto, and would go on to gain global recognition for his production chops and as leading exponents of mind-expanding psych-jazz and funk.
“We now feel confident that we don’t have to be bound by traditional song structures for this project to work live,” says Lewis Wharton. “I think the shows that followed the first record have influenced us to feel free to go with whatever sounds exciting to us without overthinking it.” Stylish and cinematic, Electric War finds Little Barrie & Malcolm Catto locked in their groove and ascending a new level in their decades-long collaboration.
