Raised in the urban sprawl of Brooklyn, Stranger Cat—the electro pop project from Cat Martino —was born out of a respite in the wilderness. As most stories go, she was seeking a noiseless place for musing, but found instead a sentient beast stalking through the woods, be it animal, alien, or deity; she memorized its sound.

The frequent collaborator with Sufjan Stevens, Son Lux, The Shins, Sharon Van Etten and others, released Stranger Cat’s debut album In The Wilderness on Joyful Noise Records, a soulful collection of art pop songs. Marked my Martino’s velvet croon, signature vocal looping, and driven by a production style that is both electronic and organic, Stranger Cat delivers intricate, soulful, and dark R&B pop. NPR cites it “Pairs high-energy production with soaring vocals that sound like a dare to be free”, while Noisey says it “Hangs in a starry galaxy alongside Bat For Lashes, Kate Bush, Chew Lips, and Purity Ring”.

Whether playing solo, or with a rotating cast of accomplices, Martino concocts a mesmerizing set of sound embraced by a voice at once fractured and full of strength, creating an aurally and visually vivid and energetic performance, making live loops onstage using voice, synths, and drum machines. All of this is to serve the song – dark, sexy, soulful, playful and dream-like – that might just make you let yourself go and dance a little bit.