Wild Sweet Orange, The Whale EP

There’s a certain type of music that, even upon first listen, makes you miss someone; or, maybe more appropriately, makes you miss a feeling. It’s hard to explain, really, but we all know this type of music — songs that touch the nerve of emotion that gets you. Wild Sweet Orange’s EP The Whale (out on Canvasback Music) does precisely that.

This five-man band from Birmingham, AL, sings songs about warnings — warnings about the future, warnings about the danger of remembering the past, and warnings about getting too comfortable in the present. They’re songs that want to grab you and not let go, because they are songs about you, songs that are intimately relatable. And because of that, songs that are really fucking good. On The Whale, Wild Sweet Orange move seamlessly between acoustic whispers (listen to “Tilt”) and gritty guitar-laden straight rock songs (“Be Careful (What You Want)”), all the while sounding a bit like home would sound if home were set to soundtrack.

Wild Sweet Orange’s official press release states that this is “music for the whole family” — I wouldn’t go that far (because some families, as you know, are super lame), but it sounds catchy so I’ll go with it. There’s a little bit of something for even the most discerning ears, and for a five song EP, The Whale hits the spot.