There’s a fresh sound in town—a cacophony of sweaty, driving rock ‘n’ roll, bringing with it grimy melodies, packed clubs, beer bottles a-plenty, and no shortage of high-octane theatrics. It comes courtesy of South City’s ¡Cazadores!, St. Louis’ newest purveyors of surf-rock indebted psych-punk.
Founded in 2024 by bassist Ryan Hunter, an active member of the late ‘90s and early ‘00s Saddle Creek Records camp and the Omaha music scene, the band’s members share a passion for spooky, fuzzed-out rock with theatrical flourishes and goth seasoning.
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Joining Hunter are a troupe of rowdy accomplices, including drummer Mike Daugherty (of Radical Serf and formerly of The Astounds), lead guitarist Max Warner, (an alumni of the Matt Jordan Band), vocalist Kat Aklizmic, (a previous member of The Klose Encounters and The Danaides), keyboardist Daniel Stumeier, and guitarist/effects specialist Matthew Schorr (Matt Jordan Band, Lazy Projector, Marie and the Americans, and Vandalion).
Spanish for “hunters,” ¡Cazadores! blends punk, surf, goth, and rockabilly influences. While pinpointing a distinct sound is tricky, imagine a musical scrum between The Cramps, Eddie Cochran, and Alien Sex Fiend.
In June, the band dropped Love After Death, its three-song debut EP. Mixed and recorded by Ryan Wasoba at Bird Cloud Studios and mastered by Daniel Merhmann at Midtown Sound House, its release coincided with a rambunctious show at Off Broadway that saw the fledgling act definitively stake its claim in St. Louis’ music scene.
The band’s members wear their influences on their sleeves, and Love After Death follows in kind. The sounds of The Cramps and The B-52s permeate throughout “Brood XIX,” a bare-fisted rocker that begins the collection.
Opening with a bass line from Hunter that could easily be lifted from an early track by The Cure, second track “Love After Death” picks up the tempo with snazzy keyboard riffs that glide into Siouxsie-like vocals and meaty guitar sections. The poppiest track of the collection, the cut bops and hops with a late-night goth club vibe.
Third and final track “The Anchor” closes things out. The searing guitars and banging percussion recall early X, while Aklizmic’s vocals are filled with Riot grrrl sharpness.
Taking just two short days to record, Love After Death is the end result of the band’s deliberately collaborative songwriting process. As Hunter explains it, he or Warner will typically craft a riff and then bring it to the rest of the band. From there Hunter and Aklizmic work on the themes and titles, with the latter composing her vocals. After that, everything else falls into place as each member makes their mark on the track.
“Historically, a member of the band will bring the skeleton of a song to practice,” Hunter says. “Then, we take that loose structure and develop it into a fully fleshed-out song. We’ll each go work on our parts offline and then bring our enhancements to the next practice.”
The bassist also noted that, despite the quick turnaround, recording the EP presented some obstacles.
“The main challenge was Kat coming down with a case of the creeping crud the day before she was supposed to track her vocals,” he says. “But it was nothing that greasy potato chips and throat coat tea couldn’t solve. She knocked it out of the park.”
According to Hunter, the group came by its mélange of influences honestly and near effortlessly, with each member throwing ingredients into the melting pot.
“The initial vision was to create a band that could be a regular artist on Swami Records—something that is a touch of punk, surf, and garage rock,” he says. “When we started writing, we were playing around with some rockabilly-esque licks. … It all merged seamlessly. Later, we decided to add keys to the mix. This allowed us to expand our sonic palette. It’s all happened with low effort. It just worked.”
Now, just more than a year after the band’s formation, Hunter believes its maturation process is in full swing.
“When we began, we were getting to know each other as musicians,” he says. “Now that we’ve been together for a year, we’re starting to get to know each other more as people, and this lends itself to more individuality showing up in our music.”
The band has already been hard at work writing material for its next offering, with multiple unreleased tracks making their way into the setlist. And while ¡Cazadores! have clearly found their footing as a crew, with a remarkably fully formed attitude and aesthetic already on offer, Hunter says they’re most excited about working to find their place in the city’s vibrant musical community.
“We’ve had the joy of sharing the stage with Cheap Knives, Jesus Christ Supercar, Blinded by Stereo, Bruiser Queen, Bagheera, and Young Animals,” he says. “Those experiences told us that we work well with bands that have high energy and craft interesting music.”
St. Louis certainly has no shortage of those. And with ¡Cazadores! stepping into the spotlight, the list just got even longer.
¡Cazadores! will perform at CBGB with Michael Blakely and Shifted on September 11 and at The Sinkhole with Tropa Magica on September 14. For music and more information, visit the group’s Bandcamp page.
