Kevin Bronson on May 13th, 2014

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It’s been a long and winding road for Nightmare and the Cat. (We figure it’s OK to invoke that line since they have a song called “Blackbird Smile.”) It’s been three years since the L.A.-based quintet debuted with an indie release that saw the brothers Stewart – singer Django and guitarist Sam, scions of Dave Stewart (Eurythmics) and Siobhan Fahey (Shakespears Sister) – abandon their respective projects and meld their seemingly contradictory sensibilities. And “Simple,” the band’s full-length debut due July 8 on Capitol, reflects the sibling revelry fueled by Sam’s guitar nerdiness and Django’s ostentatious showmanship. It’s a true panoply of influences: ’60s pop, soulful ’70s folk-rock and squishy ’80s theatrics all get their turn here, often in overarching fashion. Nightmare and the Cat’s new single “Undercover” is certainly no hands-in-the-pocket pop meditation; Django works his croon while inviting you to work the dance floor. Like a lot of what the Stewart brothers try on “Simple” – and like the album art from L.A.’s Gary Baseman – it’s a little subversive and a lot of fun.

||| Stream: “Undercover”

||| Live: Nightmare and the Cat opens for Neon Trees on June 14 at the Wiltern.

||| Previously: “Simple,” live in Chinatown, live at Gary Baseman’s House Party, “The Missing Year”

||| Also: After the jump, watch the video for “Blackbird Smile”: