Folk-rock band Fantastic Cat embraces the roots of the genres with a commitment to not take anything too seriously — except for the music. The cheekily labeled “supergroup” has received acclaim from multiple venerated sources, including current Dead & Company frontman John Mayer, Rolling Stone and a Village Voice review that asked if Fantastic Cat was “the Wu-Tang Clan of folk rock.” Their third studio album, “Cat Out Of Hell," released April 10, and the band is making a stop in Charlottesville Sunday at The Southern Café and Music Hall.
Fantastic Cat is made up of four singer-songwriters, Anthony D’Amato, Brian Dunne, Don DiLego and Mike Montali, the last of whom was a former member of rock band Hollis Brown. Although the group was born out of the New York rock scene in 2021, it evolved into something entirely its own, blending folk, rock and alternative country with pure fun and the occasional full-size cat mask.
Each member of the group brings their own professional experience and musicality to the table, laying the ground for sonic exploration. One way Fantastic Cat differentiates itself is that everyone plays every instrument — including electric and acoustic guitars, bass, drums, keyboards and tambourines. Each member constantly rotates instruments throughout the show. Dunne noted that the process of playing together on new instruments allows Fantastic Cat to harken back to the early days of rock and folk where people were still experimenting with the genres and many bands were finding their own sound for the first time.
“Everybody … is super musical,” Dunne said. “So they're gonna make good choices, but the sound of the band is sort of garagey and ramshackle in a way that I find particularly charming. That's kind of been the ace up our sleeves.”
Whether on stage or in the recording booth, this approach shakes up expectations, keeping both the band and the audience on their toes. “Cat Out of Hell” was created with live performance in mind. The self-produced album was recorded with all four members playing together in the same room — an unorthodox technique in modern recording that allows for a sense of cohesion and intimacy in the final product — replicating the sound of a live performance. The group added post-production elements later, with care taken to ensure the ethos of the band’s live show isn’t lost in the production.
“With this album, we really tried to capture sort of the lightning of our live show onto an album,” Dunne said. “That's why the album sort of starts with crowd noise. So it is honestly an album that is designed for playing live.”
Their new album, “Cat Out of Hell,” leans heavily into the band’s working-class background, tackling the struggles of everyday people with a sly and quick-witted tongue. According to Dunne, the album takes on the challenges that people face as they grow up and approach adulthood, themes that certainly resonate with a college-aged demographic. He cited track eight, titled “Mona Be Still,” as his favorite song on the album, one that he said is a representation of his personal goals as an artist.
“When we were recording that song, I thought to myself … this is the exact type of thing I wanted to make when I moved to New York,” Dunne said. “Just sort of thoughtful, emotional indie rock with a gnarly guitar solo and artistic integrity.”
That thoughtfulness and wit found in Fantastic Cat’s lyricism is a product of their synergetic writing style. Just as the band members swap instruments for each song, their songwriting process is an equally collaborative endeavor.
“Some songs are written where a couple of us get together and sit down and sort of hash out an idea. And then sometimes somebody brings in a song that's almost fully formed, and the rest of us sort of just act like editors,” Dunne said. “Sometimes somebody brings in such a great idea that it doesn't require much editing at all, and you just, you know, contribute what you can to it as a musician.”
Part of the allure of Fantastic Cat is how grounded and genuine they seem, breathing humor and life back into rock with each element of their collective persona, from their kooky name — serendipitously bestowed upon them by a friendly waitress at an East Village bar — to the signature feline masks worn in the band’s promotional materials. The amicable dynamic of the tight-knit group translates to the music, giving Fantastic Cat records the warm, personal feeling of an intimate jam session with good friends.
“We're all really good friends, and we're trying to just entertain one another,” Dunne said. “We figure if we all like something, or think it's funny or think it's weird or we think it's interesting, that it'll probably translate.”
Each member of the group is an impressive solo artist in their own right, but Fantastic Cat gives them a chance to spread out the weight of an individual career. Dunne attributed the band’s ethos to their sense of humor and desire to have fun with the music, each member fearlessly merging their independent talents for the benefit of the collective.
“We're all solo artists, and we are still solo artists, and when it comes to that, there's a lot of heft and emotional and ego, sort of solipsism,” Dunne said. “There's just a heaviness with that.”
At their lively shows, Fantastic Cat lets viewers into their folk-rock world, blending intimacy and energy with absurdism and plenty of personality. They beat to their own drum — no matter which member is actually helming the rhythm section — and their deft improvisational ability means that no two shows are the same.
“When you go to see Fantastic Cat, you're never seeing anything complacent. We are always on the edge of our abilities and on our toes,” Dunne said.
Fantastic Cat will be performing at The Southern Café and Music Hall on the Downtown Mall Sunday. Tickets are available on The Southern’s website.
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