It’s no secret that we are suckers for Australian bands here at CPRW. My personal latest discovery from down under is an indie punk trio from Brisbane called Smallest Horse. The band released The New Farm Sharks EP in March and here’s what I thought of it…
The EP kicks off with a song titled The Race Up The Stairs. This was the first song I heard by Smallest Horse. Let’s just say that it certainly hooked me in and encouraged me to check out the rest of the EP when I had it stuck in my head for days. The track is upbeat and the infectious ukulele melody combined with a fast paced rhythm section instantly gives it a feel-good feel. Apparently the song is actually about band member Nick almost dying, but then not dying, so it’s a sort of sad subject but not a sad song! I Can Tell is next up. With a slow and stripped back opening featuring just vocals and ukulele, you’d be forgiven for thinking that this was going to be a quiet love song. Well, it kind of is for the first thirty seconds or so but then the pace picks up for another snappy indie punk tune. It’s a sound that Smallest Horse do so well. In contrast to the upbeat and feel-good nature of the first two songs on The New Farm Sharks EP, All Of My Friends is without a doubt an initially sombre-sounding track. Opening with the line ‘All of my friends need to stop dying, I’m in my twenties and I’m sick of crying.’ is pretty hard-hitting but it is also comforting to those listening who might also be in a similar situation. There is a reminder within the lyrics that people are not always as ‘happy’ as they might seem by the photos they post on social media. As the song progresses, it becomes a celebration of those people who have died – gone but not forgotten. A wonderful tribute. The final song, New Farm Sharks, Pt. 1, sounds nothing like the rest of the EP. Gone is the ukulele, the bass and the drums and instead we have the melancholic notes of a piano. The vocals are slower, full of emotion and powerfully honest. You could say that all of the songs on the EP are emotional and honest but here, maybe due to the stripped back nature, it is perhaps more obvious. It almost feels like an intrusion to be listening to such a song but it’s also a lovely end to the, aptly titled, New Farm Sharks EP.
If you’re a fan of indie punk songs that might just make you feel something, then I can highly recommend that you give The New Farm Sharks EP a listen. After writing this review I checked out their previous EP, The Goodonya EP, which is also great. Smallest Horse are great.
You can (and should) stream and download The New Farm Sharks EP on Bandcamp and like Smallest Horse on Facebook.
This review was written by Emma Prew.
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