This Is Our Jam: Cosmo V, “With The Wild Beasts”

A lot of the fun of watching a Quentin Tarantino film (at least for me) is in the soundtrack. Inglorious Basterds recontextualized David Bowie’s “Cat People (Putting Out the Fire),” Death Proof turned April March’s “Chick Habit” into a girl-power anthem, and Pulp Fiction changed the way we thought of Dick Dale and the Del-Tone’s “Miserlou” forever. All of those songs told their own story with as much visceral force and imagination as the images they accompanied. Cosmo V’s “With the Wild Beasts," is exactly the sort of song that would fit into a Tarantino movie—the track envelopes the listener completely in its own hazy narrative. The Dutch solo artist refers to her brand of minimal dreampop as “sleazy lo-fi,” a description that feels only sort of accurate for the sultry and sparse “With the Wild Beasts.” While the song is indeed a bit seedy (it sounds tailor-made for some decaying tropical lounge), “With the Wild Beasts” is certainly not under-produced. Humidity and heat ripple off of a surf-rock bassline that undulates under breathy vocals. At first listen, Cosmo V’s voice sounds a lot like Lykke Li, but there’s an edge to “With the Wild Beasts” that is less emotional and more cool than the sound Lykke Li usually goes for, but is equally dangerous and coy. Dark, psychedelic, sexy, and mysterious, the track stands up just fine on its own, but I can’t help but imagine Michael Madsen smoking a cuban as Cosmo V plays in the background. Tarantino, if you’re reading this, you owe me one.

Download the full album, here.