Wild Horse is a talented, hard-working and charismatic indie pop-rock trio based in East Sussex, England, and comprised of brothers Henry and Jack Baldwin and Ed Barnes, their long-time friend since primary school. Now in their early 20s, the guys are seasoned musicians who’ve been writing and recording songs since forming in 2013, when they were barely teenagers. Both Henry and Jack are multi-instrumentalists who play guitar, bass and keyboards, as well as sing vocals, while Ed plays drums and percussion, sings backing vocals and plays guitar on a few tracks.

The Baldwin brothers are also prolific songwriters who’ve penned hundreds of songs over the years, and since 2017, Wild Horse has released five albums, three EPs and scores of singles. On the strength of their music and energetic live performances across England, they’ve built an ever-expanding fan base and garnered praise by music writers (including yours truly) and broadcasters, with their songs being regularly played on numerous FM & internet stations around the world, as well as mainstream radio programs BBC Introducing and BBC Sussex, Surrey & Kent. In June, they were even mentioned during a hearing in the British Parliament on funding to support struggling music venues.

I’ve been following them for over five years, and it’s been a pleasure watching them mature and grow as both musicians and gentlemen. I’ve reviewed two of their albums, DANCE!! Like An Animal, in 2019, and When the Pool Is Occupied, in late 2021, as well as their singles “Bitter” (which spent two months on my weekly top 30 in the fall of 2021) and “Cougar” this past January. Those two songs have been among a string of singles they’ve been dropping at the rate of roughly one every two months beginning in June 2022. Their seventh and latest single is “Do You Wanna Talk“, a song they describe as “a summer anthem about an on-off relationship and all that comes with it.”

Released through Animal Farm Songs, “Do You Wanna Talk” was written by Jack and produced by Mat Leppanen. Over a bouncy, toe-tapping groove, courtesy of Jack’s warm bassline and Ed’s thumping drumbeats, Jack layers beautiful jangly guitars, accompanied by his and Mat’s sparkling keyboard synths. It all serves as a sunny backdrop for Jack’s endearing vocals as he earnestly sings to a romantic partner with whom he has a precarious hot and cold relationship, neither of them wanting to fully commit nor break things off: “I don’t wanna see you no more, but stay by my side. And ooh, I don’t think about you, but my head shines you in a spotlight. Do you wanna talk? Do you wanna talk about it?/ I don’t wanna know, but I can’t stop thinking of it. I think we’re both as bad, we’re going round in circles.”

“Do You Wanna Talk” is another strong link in an unbroken chain of wonderful songs from this talented young band.

Here’s the song on Bandcamp:

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Stream their music:  Spotify / Soundcloud / Apple Music / Reverbnation / YouTube
Purchase:  Bandcamp / Amazon