Album Review: Irruption by Ship Thieves (by Omar Ramlugon)

The Ship Thieves have had quite the metamorphosis over time; beginning as an alt-country/rock side project, switching to a full band with some Georgia Satellites-esque Southern twang, before finally heading straight into a full punk rock charge with their 2016 release No Anchor. Comprised of Hot Water Music’s Chris Wollard, ex-Quit guitarist Addison Burns, former Samiam bassist Chad Darby and Enablers’ drummer Bobby Brown, it was arguably the moment that a lot of people had been waiting for. While the previous releases were great in their own right, it’s pretty much an ineluctable fact that Chris Wollard is a punk rock songwriting dynamo, with his smoky, gnarled vocal delivery serving as the foundation for the rest of the band to tear into another batch of simply excellent songs. With this in mind, it’s safe to say that Irruption picks up where No Anchor began, bursting at the seams with crunching guitars, gruff but harmonised vocals and interlocking melodic hooks that remind of Sugar or later period Leatherface.

Openers ‘The Embers Of Enlightenment’ and ‘Race To Oblivion’ practically jump off the record player, with the forceful rhythm section providing the foundation for Wollard’s slippery, arresting lead guitar that always strikes the balance between raw emotion and precision. It’s an often abused trope that punk rockers can’t play their instruments, but Ship Thieves are just one of thousands of examples to consign that misconception to the scrapheap; the band exhibit tight, controlled power throughout while never seeming mechanical.‘Ghost Town’ features a wistful searching chorus that kicks right in the heart while the pummelling ‘Tangled Net’ might even be the album’s highlight, with an extended lyrical coda that has Wollard howling “in isolation” over and over again. Given that huge swathes of us have spent nearly a year locked in our homes at the time of writing, the song bites particularly hard.

‘Hercules Stomp’ puts Addison Burns on the microphone, and his higher pitched but yearning vocal delivery completely fits the track’s gleaming hooks. It seems that this album has more and more of Burns trading vocals with Wollard as well as providing excellent backing, and it’s a brilliant addition to the Ship Thieves’ palate. It’s interesting to note how Wollard functioned as the higher, slightly less raspy singer in Hot Water Music, and with Irruption, Burns takes on this role with aplomb. ‘Access Denied’ reminds of Cherry Knowle-era Leatherface, with wiry single-note hooks dotted in amongst slabs of twisting riffs.‘(I Don’t Wanna) Face The Dog’ is one of the most gutsy, aggressive songs on the album, with Wollard and Burns’ call-and-response vocal lines bolstered by a furious Government Issue-esque descending riff, while ‘He Lost His Head’ and its minor key riffing gives way to an absolutely ripping guitar solo that blows back your hair. ‘Lurking Strain’ closes out the record with a sense of uncertainty and desperation, which couldn’t have been more fitting given the climate in which it was released. Burns and Wollard take it in turns to sing, with the former in especially good form, delivering a performance that will send shivers down your spine. Lots of bands would be hard pressed to have one song of this quality on a record, but the Ship Thieves have spoiled us with an entire album’s worth.

When No Anchor arrived in 2016, I remember reading an interview with Wollard shortly after where he noted that Ship Thieves were already working on the next album. Although it’s been a long five years, I’m happy to say definitively that Irruption is an even better record than its predecessor; it adds new elements to the Ship Thieves’ heady brew while keeping their signature mix of melody and sonic heft. It’s a powerful, hard-charging, yet tender and earnest record that is delivered with complete conviction. Who wouldn’t want more music from a band that just keep moving from strength to strength like the seasoned punk legends they are? Miss this at your peril.

Available wherever you stream or download music.

Like Ship Thieves on Facebook here.

This review was written by Omar Ramlugon.

Album Review: Attempts At Understanding by Animal Byproducts (by Emma Prew)

Animal Byproducts are a Manchester-based power pop meets folk punk foursome who describe themselves as ‘placid pals peddling patriarchy-poking park punk’ – and I just had to quote that for its excellent alliteration. At the beginning of February the band released a brand new EP titled Attempts At Understanding and I immediately knew this was something I wanted to review.

The first of four tracks on Attempts At Understanding is titled Bin Day and it opens with a wonderful crescendo of brass instruments and gentle guitar strumming. Before too long, the vocals come in with the wise words ‘Please don’t forget that it’s your bin day’. I can’t say that I recall ever listening to any other song that reminds me to put the bins out – and I was literally singing this to myself the other day before putting the bin out – so Animal Byproducts definitely get points for originality here. Of course, the song is not strictly just about your household rubbish, it’s about much more than that. Racists? Homophobes? People that say ‘It wasn’t like this back in my day’? They can all get in the bin. Next up is There Are Dozens Of Us! and the band don’t waste any time in getting going with this track. It’s upbeat and catchy from the outset with a superb chorus that unashamedly denies gender roles and stereotypes (‘Do I undermine your solid gender roles? Or are we all just assortments of holes?’) complete with some simply delightful power pop style backing harmonies in the second verse and a trumpet solo later on. It’s hard to pick but this might be my favourite of the four songs on the EP.

Obscene is the name of the third track on Attempts At Understanding and it opens with a melodic guitar riff that will have you bopping your head along in no time at all. When the drums come in the beat is more firmly set and it carries the song nicely through the first verse – which gave me real Chas Palmer-Williams (of Lightyear, but I mean his solo stuff more so) vibes, by the way – and into an epic sounding second verse. The trumpet really is the star of the show in this song and, as someone who is more traditionally a fan of banjo or harmonica in folk punk, it really makes me excited to listen to more tunes with trumpet parts that aren’t so obviously placed as in, for example, ska punk – if that makes any sense. The last song on the EP is Tavistock Square. Another track that doesn’t hang around, this song ensures that Attempts At Understanding ends with an energetic burst. At first I thought the lyrics were quite erratic, with talk of Gandhi, Alan Turing and the bombing of Hiroshima all in a single verse, but I’ve since read about Tavistock Square (in Bloomsbury, London) on Wikipedia and the lyrics make a whole lot more sense! The song looks at all the memories that can become assigned to and associated with a certain place, as well as reflecting on the peace that can be found in a specific location that you yourself hold fond memories of. ‘So the next time you see me in Tavistock Square, Please help me look for the peace that I found there.’

If you’re not already familiar with Animal Byproducts but like bands such as ONSIND and Toodles & The Hectic Pity then you definitely need to check out this EP.

You can stream and download Attempts At Understanding on Bandcamp and like Animal Byproducts on Facebook.

This review was written by Emma Prew.

Album Review: The Lockdowns by The Lockdowns

The Lockdowns are a new band from Houston, Texas. I’m guessing, from their name, that they formed during 2020 due to being locked down because of that awful pandemic. In January, the four piece released their debut self titled EP. It contains six broken hearted pop punk songs that remind me of Teenage Bottlerocket at their best.

The EP begins with the song Dirty Mouth. The track gets the EP off to a flying start with some buzzsaw guitars and an energetic drumbeat before some rapid-fire vocals come into play. The Lockdowns fly through the first verse before hitting the chorus. As you would imagine from a pop punk band, there are some great moments for singing along here. The track is about using bad language and being offended by it. The whoa-ohs in the song remind me of one of my all time favourite bands, The McRackins. Next up is Baby Can I Change Your Mind. After the energy of Dirty Mouth, this song really slows down and has a 60s doo-wop style to it. I loved that The Lockdowns decided to change things up like this so early on in the EP. The vocals are another big high point on the song. I’m not sure if there are two singers or the singer just changed octaves but the switch to the higher pitch is a thing of beauty. The third song is Duck Tape And Super Glue. Beginning with an audio clip basically saying that when you love someone you should give them all you have, from there we move into a song about getting your heart broken again. The band brings the tempo and energy back up on this track, despite it being quite a sad song. Vocally the lead singer settles on a raspy style that I really like. It gives the song a bit of bite rather than being too sugary sweet.

In the intro for this review I mentioned being reminded of Teenage Bottlerocket on the EP. The fourth song, Skeletons, is the perfect example of this. The opening has a heavier sound than anything previous and as soon as the vocals come in I think of Kody Templeman. He’s one of my favourite singers so I’m all for this. The lyrics do that wonderful thing of painting a great picture of what the song is about. I’ll leave you to listen to work out what’s going on. The penultimate song is titled Maybe I’ll Fall In Love With You Tomorrow. This was one of my favourites on the EP. There’s a breezy, summer time, uplifting feel to the song that puts a smile on my bearded face. The introduction of the song sees the bass become quite prevalent which I thought added a great extra layer to the track. On first listen, it felt like a positive and hopeful song but when you listen again the track is about building walls around yourself, trying to ensure that you’re not going to get your heart broken again. The sixth and final song on the EP is Monsters. It starts out with a fantastic building introduction that lets you know that big things are on the way. It also infuses you with enough energy to get your through the rest of the EP in fine fashion. There’s this superb urgency in the vocals that really pulled me in. Monsters is about having children and, despite it being very difficult at times, them meaning everything to you. I don’t think I’ve heard a song touching on this subject in a punk song in a long time and it’s a really refreshing way to end the EP.

This is a fantastic pop punk EP. I love this sound and always look forward to discovering new bands playing the style. If you’re a fan of Teenage Bottlerocket, The Lillingtons, Dear Landlord, The Copyrights etc. then The Lockdowns are really worth your time.

Stream and download The Lockdowns on Bandcamp here.

Like The Lockdowns on Facebook here.

This review was written by Colin Clark.

Video Premiere: Poisoned Lungs by One Million Motors

Today I'm extremely excited to present an exclusive premiere of the new single from Newcastle's One Million Motors. Poisoned Lungs is released everywhere on Friday 12th of May but you can check out the lyric video below.

Pre-save Poisoned Lungs on Spotify here: http://smarturl.it/ajrf24
Bandcamp: https://onemillionmotors.bandcamp.com/
Facebook: http://facebook.com/onemillionmotors
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/onemillionmotors/
Twitter: https://twitter.com/ommisreal

 

 

Album Review: Leapfrog by Trashed Ambulance

Canada’s Trashed Ambulance have been together in one form or another since 2014 and the three piece have become known for their snotty vocalled melodic skate punk. In January they released a brand new EP titled Leapfrog on Thousand Island Records.

The first of the three songs on Leapfrog is titled On The Mend. The song starts with a slow build featuring some distinctive vocals that pull you in alongside a simple melody. This eases you in to the whole EP brilliantly and will also get you singing along. There’s a great sense of urgency in the song that keeps you listening and I particularly enjoyed the guitar solo that leads towards the final chorus of the track. What a great start. Next is the EP’s title track, Leapfrog. This is a more emotional song dedicated to a lost friend of the band. The band turn down the snotty style of their vocals and there are some No Use For A Name vibes in the song, particularly with some soaring harmonies. The buzzing guitar riff gives the song more of a pop punk sound that makes it super accessible from the start. The tempo of the vocals gives it plenty of energy and the shift in melody for the second half of the track for a repetitive and building chorus is a thing of beauty. The gang vocals give so much to the song’s finale. I loved this song. Last up is Delinquent. Trashed Ambulance return to their debauchery ways with this song about petty crimes and always getting away with it. This is a fast and fun skate punk song that will get a crowd singing along with big smiles on their faces. This is Trashed Ambulance at their raucous best. I have this image of the band playing this song live in my head and there being a massive stage invasion for the song with a massive gang vocal choir. It would be glorious.

This is a short but fun EP from Trashed Ambulance. I’m hoping that it will lead on to a future full length from the band as it really whet my appetite for more new tracks from the band. This is exactly how I want to hear my skate punk.

Stream and download Leapfrog on Bandcamp here.

Like Trashed Ambulance on Facebook here.

This review was written by Colin Clark.

Album Review: Cracked Beyond Repair by Nelson Savage

Despite still being a relatively new band, Edinburgh’s Nelson Savage have been super prolific since forming in 2018 – they’ve already released four EPs. Their latest, and the subject of this review, was released in January on Anti-Manifesto Records. Titled Cracked Beyond Repair, it features five brand new tracks of emotional pop punk.

The opening song is named Bricks. The track starts with a fantastic guitar solo that quickly pulls you in. Soon enough the vocals come in and we are greeted with a subtle yet mesmerizing style that does a magnificent job of telling the story of the song. Bricks has plenty of hooks that will enable you to pick up the song quickly and the use of harmonies throughout the song add some brilliant additional layers to the track. Next is Glasgow Coma Scale. The song sees Nelson Savage up the tempo of the EP and also feels as if the song was written to be a cathartic sing-along. It certainly feels like that. The track is about feeling as if you’re sleepwalking through your life and looking for people who are feeling the same. I really enjoyed the moment where the track got slightly quieter with the lines “while I’m sedate, can you relate...” before it builds to a bigger finale.

The third song is Choke. Choke starts out with a jangly guitar riff before the vocals come in. The track sees Nelson Savage venture into the political waters (potentially for the first time as Nelson Savage). Choke is about being outraged by the political and social unrest that is ongoing all over the world, wanting to speak out but not feeling able to. I’m sure that’s something a lot of us can relate to. The penultimate song is titled Auctioneering. This track is about trying to sell yourself to the world and showcasing every side of the person you are. Vocally it sounds slightly angrier than the previous songs; you can definitely hear some spite at times. This adds an extra emotional element to the entire EP that I really liked. The big sing-along of “if you’re not buying what I’m selling” was a great touch that I look forward to witnessing live at some point. The final song on Cracked Beyond Repair is Kings Of The Inbetween. Whenever a song begins with a cymbal crash you expect it to be high in energy and, in its own way, Kings Of The Inbetween delivers that. The track looks at life in your thirties and all the questions that surround your life at the time. Remembering that the cookie cutter life isn’t for everyone and people are successful in different ways. I found this song extremely cathartic as I often question where I am in my life before realising that it doesn’t matter, as I’m happy.

Nelson Savage are one of the hottest new(ish) bands in Scotland. There’s always a slight worry that when a band releases so much music so consistently, will it always be good or will it be a bit throwaway? I’m very happy to report that Nelson Savage seem to get better and better with every release. If you’re not listening to these guys yet, change that.

Stream and download Cracked Beyond Repair on Bandcamp here.

Like Nelson Savage on Facebook here.

This review was written by Colin Clark.

Album Review: Cobwebs by Burning Nickels

If you’ve been following our CPRW Records releases closely you hopefully should have already heard of Burning Nickels. Burning Nickels are a three piece band from Alberta, Canada, who play melodic pop punk. Since 2018 the band have been consistently releasing new songs on High End Denim records. On March the 2nd they release their newest EP Cobwebs. We were lucky enough to get an early listen.

The four track EP opens with the title track, Cobwebs. Burning Nickels were kind enough to send us a super early version of the track to use on our Hidden Gems 2 compilation that we released in January. This is a updated version of the track. It’s a upbeat piece of melodic pop punk in a similar vein to bands such as No Use For A Name and Bracket. On my first listen of the track what really stands out is the flow of vocals during the verse alongside a truly impressive guitar part. The track is about feeling depressed but gradually realising things can get better. The second track is Sentiment which is a Trashed Ambulance cover. Musically the song sounds smoother than the original but Alex Goldfarb of Debt Neglector’s guest vocals add the gruffness you hear in Trashed Ambulance’s version. The song is about dealing with mental health issues and questioning why you are going through these struggles. I really like the imagery that the audio clip at the end of the song presents. Have a listen to find out why I think it’s so smart.

The UK’s Sam Russo makes a guest appearance on the third song, Bootstraps. This song is perhaps the most varied song on the EP so far. The track combines the poppiest of pop punk alongside some heavier skate punk moments as well as Russo breaking your heart as only he can. Bootstraps is about the ending of a relationship and coming to terms with everything that’s happened along with worrying how much more anguish you can take emotionally. The final track on the EP is titled Summer Boner. This song is a retrospective song that also has a bit of a silly side. It’s about looking back on a past summer romance and realising that you had stronger feelings than your first thought. This is one of those great songs that’s fantastic at painting an image with its lyrics. It really allows the listener to visualise the story of the song in their heads. Imagery is such a important part of songwriting and Burning Nickels do such a good job here. There are also some very juvenile lyrics that did make me smile, as I am still a child at heart.

Burning Nickels are one of the most fun bands I’ve discovered over the past year but they are also very capable of writing some serious songs that listeners will really relate to and hopefully get a feeling of catharsis from. It’s clear that the band aren’t the type to sit for too long and I’m already looking forward to what they do next.

Pre-order Cobwebs on Bandcamp here.

Like Burning Nickels on Facebook here.

This review was written by Colin Clark.