Track by track: The Last Wolf - On The Edge Of Brightness
(Artwork by Mandy Collaud, also in the band, Satarma
The Last Wolf started off as a solo project by Mathieu Evéquoz, a multi-instrumentalist singer-songwriter based in Carouge. Whilst recording the first album, Those Days are Gone, he invited Kevin Ruffieux (Mount Kōya, Olympic Antigua) to play the drum parts. The follow-up, Another Kind of Blue, which also featured Kevin on drums, was mixed by his Mount Kōya bandmate, Aria Konishi.
Last year, the project officially became a trio with Aria taking over bass duties and Kevin becoming the full-time drummer. The latest album, On the Edge of Brightness, is the first collection of songs as a band with all three members participating in the creative process.
I had the possibility to listen to the album before its release and I have been digging it a lot. The band’s sound has evolved but it still retains a lot of the qualities that got me into the Last Wolf - the arrangements, the interplay between the instruments, the solos which complement the songs and the softly sung vocals.
To celebrate the album’s release, the band will be performing at Caveaux du cœur d’or in Chexbres.
In this latest edition of Track by track, we find out more about the stories behind the songs (and the personal tragedy that had a big influence on the album).
Introduction :
On the Edge of Brightness
For the album title, I wanted it to evoke the fine line between happiness and sadness. The record is very personal as the two main themes are love and death.
I lost a great friend of mine when I was writing the songs, it was hard to process and impossible to accept. It was near the end of 2024, a year filled with great things happening for me, such as a new release, Another Kind of Blue, and having a great band to play my songs with for the first time. But when you are on the edge of something it can always go either way.
Most of the tracks were played live before the recording sessions. It really helped with the arrangements but also with the vibe. It’s the first album by The Last Wolf recorded as a full band, arranged with Aria and Kevin, and mostly recorded live in the same room (for the basic tracks). We did all the recording in four days (across two weekends) and everybody was fully committed to the album, which made me really happy.
Till The End Of The Day
It’s the last song I wrote for that album and it came out quite quickly and easily. Strangely enough, I remember it was the beginning of July 2025, and the bass line came first which is not usual for me, just before leaving for our gig in London. The demo sounded like a song by Eels from their Hombre Lobo era, an album which was a big influence for me at the time of its release.
We added the surf guitar and backing vocals during the recording to create a 50s/60s feeling which I am proud of. It almost sounds like an oldies. It’s a definitive love song to my girlfriend who helped me a lot during that rough time.
Disposable Waste
I had the guitar riff on my computer since 2020. It sounded like bossanova, but I had a hard time coming up with the parts for the other instruments. Thanks to Aria and Kevin, we found a way to make it sound full, relaxed and groovy. Aria’s bass lines really “tie the track together” as Jeffrey Lebowski would say.
Around the end of 2024, I came up with lyrics related to my late friend. It’s about that moment when a love relationship comes to an end, everything gets dark, love has disappeared, the understanding is over and you feel like disposable waste.
Prey Of Yesterday
It’s another one of those songs which came out really quickly. It’s a direct dedication to my friend. It’s a folk-pop number full of regret and nostalgia but at the same time the music is light and almost naive.
I think it a well built song which is very honest and direct. It’s an easy song to understand and to listen to. Aria plays the cello on the pre-chorus which makes it bittersweet and Kevin whistles and plays the glockenspiel on the chorus which give it a bit of lightness and hopefulness. It’s probably my favourite song on the record.
Isn’t It Ironic?
This track was completed with the band during one of the days of recording. On my demo, it sounded like a latin track which made sense since I recycled some chords from Aguas de Março by Elis Regina and Tom Jobim, a perfect, beautiful track. When Kevin added his groove to the song, it changed the mood completely. The track now sounds like a lost track by Steely Dan or a 70s yacht rock band. It’s dreamy, warm and nocturnal, a bit jazzy. In some ways, it reminds me of the track And So I Know by Stone Temple Pilots in its mood. It’s the only song with keys (Wurlitzer) on the album.
Burning Down
Lyrically I tried to understand my friend’s decision and speak from his point of view. It’s twisted and dark but it’s probably what he was feeling at the time. When it’s impossible to keep on going, when you are at the point of no return. Musically it’s really instinctive, in your face and groovy. There’s no bullshit, it’s a really rocky number. I like the interplay between the bass and the guitar riff on the motif. Aria’s cello on the chorus gives it an Electric Light Orchestra/70s kind of vibe. I wanted the end of the song to be very chaotic, an “all hell breaks loose” situation. When we play live it’s often the climax of the gig, we tried to recreate that in a studio situation. Fuzz out!
Another Trip Around The Sun
This is an older song, I recorded it as a demo around 2018. At the time, it was an acoustic number with only guitar and vocals. Another love song. When we tried to play it live with the band, it was easy and sounded great straightaway. It’s so cool when everything comes together so easily. I really like the mix by Aria, it’s Americana as fuck but at the same time it’s groovy. Americana soul maybe? Something like that.
It’s Just A Song
It’s the oldest song on the record. I wrote it around 2017 if I remember correctly. Thematically, it’s the only non-personal song. It’s about a guy who becomes an addict in the first verse, goes to jail in the second verse and finds love and redemption in the last verse. A real folk song in some ways. It’s a live recording with only two microphones. Aria is on the second acoustic guitar and Kevin plays percussion (hidden behind a carpet :-)). It’s the last song we recorded for the album. A simple acoustic song.
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