Stomp Box Choir take a darker turn on ‘Caught In A Flashback’, building the track around a woozy trip-hop pulse, shared lead vocals and the uneasy sensation of being dragged back into a memory you thought had already loosened its grip.
With band members Joe Stratton and Howsie stepping forward together for the first time, the song carries a more inward, slightly haunted character than the band’s previous releases. Their voices sit naturally against the deep bass and booming kick, giving the track a slow, hypnotic pull that nods towards 90s trip-hop without feeling trapped by it.
Beginning with what would traditionally be its outro, ‘Caught In A Flashback’ deliberately disorients us before circling back through its own emotional landscape. The repeated title phrase becomes more obsessive as the arrangement develops, almost like a thought that will not stop replaying.
That idea is pushed further in the bridge, where delay-soaked guitars open the track into something more psychedelic and space-rock influenced. It’s a striking contrast to the heavier, enclosed groove of the opening sections, and gives the song room to expand before its final resolution.
Influences from Four Tet, UNKLE and Sir Was are audible in the rhythmic and atmospheric choices, but Stomp Box Choir keep a strong traditional songwriting instinct at the centre.
Brooding, immersive and cleverly structured, ‘Caught In A Flashback’ finds the band pushing deeper into electronic territory while still retaining the melodic sense that has always anchored their work to date.
