Browsing Tag

Riot Grrrl

Commüne pierced the punk-rock veil with their vignette of ennui-soaked suffering ‘Alive, ok’

Posted on 30 November 2024

Slick with ennui-soaked suffering, the latest single, ‘Alive, ok’, from the Athens, Georgia powerhouse, Commüne, leads you into a vortex of existentially scuzzy philosophical enquiry.

If you think the lyric, “And we’re alive, and I know that it’s fine and I’ll tell you that’s great but what about the pain?”, hits hard, brace yourself for the impact of the hypersonic punk rock hooks which, when paired with the Kathleen Hanna-esque bratty vocal delivery, is hard enough to bruise.

Commüne pulled all of the punches with this kaleidoscope of dissonance, which efficaciously depicts the intensity of emotion when you attempt to find tangible reasons to endeavour through relentless chapters of comfortless anhedonia.

With guitar strings, which may as well be live electrical wires burning white hot buzzsaw riffs into the track over the frenetic pulse of the percussion against the ferociously honeyed harmonies, ‘Alive, ok’ is so much more than a testament to the fire-branded power of Commüne; it’s a monolithic monument standing in the punk rock pantheon.

Stream the official music video for ‘Alive, ok’ on YouTube now.

Review by Amelia Vandergast

Matching Drapes reinvented Riot Grrrl with the infectious indie rock single, all my friends are (snakes)

Posted on 3 June 2024

If you attempted to temper your teenage angst by cranking up Jack of Jill, Bikini Kill, and Babes in Toyland, tune into the latest single, all my friends are (snakes), from the bratty resistance against misogyny, Matching Drapes.

Taken from the manslaughter EP, all my friends are (snakes) injects the modern reverberations of infectious indie rock into a 90s Riot Grrrl aesthetic, moving far past the mediocrity of uninspired pastiche.

As the basslines prowl, the overdriven guitars augment the single with a level of volition fitting for the tongue-in-cheek articulation of outrage as the vocals spit out the venom of fake friends. We all have them, yet, when the single was organically conceived from a jam session, Matching Drapes intended for the track to be an invitation to shed inhibition and imbibe in rhythmic hedonism.

The project by Berlin/Reykjavik band, comprising the two frontwomen Arndís Rán and Jacquie Hirt, started in 2023.  To record their debut EP, they were joined by Liam Harrison (lead guitar), Toby Savill (rhythm guitar), Niclas Liebling (Bass) and Adrian Lizarraga (drums). As a fully-fledged unreckonable force, they’re not a band you want to leave off your radar.

all my friends are (snakes) will be available to stream on all major platforms, including Spotify and Soundcloud, from May 31.

Review by Amelia Vandergast

Make ViperSnatch’s latest Riot Grrrl revival, Witchcraft, Baby, your new sonic ritual

Posted on 11 March 2024

ViperSnatch added a touch of the arcane to the airwaves with the debut of their latest fiercely fervent release, Witchcraft Baby.

As the basslines growl, the drums punctuate the production with volition, and the guitars give the release a chilling shadow side, the vocal dualism, which seamlessly switches from innocently light harmonics to visceral outpours of rancour, draws you deeper into the Riot Grrrl revival that leaves plenty of room for folkishly ritualistic experimental expression.

The Central Queensland-hailing three-piece originally convened to bring a female perspective to Australia’s alt-music scene in 2018, but in 2024, they’re proving to be an indomitably unreckonable force at the epicentre of the scene.

ViperSnatch isn’t just following in the footsteps of L7, Babes in Toyland and Jack Off Jill. With their latest release, they chartered their own noir-esque path through grungy, bluesy punk rock while empowering their ever-growing fanbase to resist the limitations that will always be placed on women and stand at your own vanguard in front of the pitchforks. They’re one of the only breakthrough outfits phenomenal enough to be revered as iconic.

Stream Witchcraft, Baby on Spotify now.

Review by Amelia Vandergast

Break out of your digitally paralysed repose with A VOID’s latest single, The Gutter

Posted on 2 December 2023

After gaining international airplay, featuring in seminal Spotify editorial playlists, and hitting the most prestigious venues in Europe, the Paris-born, London-residing three-piece, A VOID, are currently at work on their third studio album with the Grammy-winning producer Shuta Shinoda.

Their latest single, The Gutter, serves an evocative aperitif to the highly anticipated LP. By encapsulating the essence of the alt-90s while refusing to allow influence to inhibit their creative song crafting, A VOID became one of the refreshingly rancorous entities in the UK’s expansive alternative scene.

The song kicks off with an unfiltered rawness reminiscent of Hole and the Distillers. This visceral yet tonally dreamy introduction sets the stage for what’s to come: a Vercua Salt-esque chorus that delivers a heavy artillery earworm in the form of pounding hooks.

As the track progresses, it introduces angular guitar work that echoes Interpol to add layers of complexity and showcasing the artist’s ability to blend influence and ingenuity into authenticity. Rather than paying tribute to the past, A VOID remain relentless in their determination to breathe new life into the familiar.

The overarching artfulness of the track doesn’t overshadow its integral linchpin; the powerful chords struck through the lyricism which reflects on the stagnancy screens can sucker us into This lament on fear of failure and frustration with procrastination speaks for the vast majority who watch the hours and days slip by in a malaise despite best intentions.

Produced by Shuta Shinoda (Daughter, Spiritualized, Ghostpoet) at Hackney Road Studios and mastered by John Webber (Bowie, Echo and the Bunnymen, Yungblud), The Gutter transcends and subverts all expectations in its artfully grungy beguile as it playfully leads the listener down Lynchian rabbit hols with instrumental drops.

The Gutter was officially released on November 18th; stream it on Spotify

Review by Amelia Vandergast

wych elm gave grunge a place on 21st-century airwaves with their pitchfork-permeated single, ‘Burnt at the Stake’

Posted on 11 October 2023

Wearing their Angel Olsen and Courtney Barnett influences on the sleeve of their guitarwork and their devil-may-care vocal lines, the Bristol-based trio, wych elm, gave their latest psychedelically sludgy feat of alt-indie, Burnt at the Stake, as much mainstream appeal as their hits that have surpassed the million stream mark.

The winding carnivalesque-with-macabre-glamour melodies are carved through by the angular syncopated notes to ensure the tension is succinctly taught before the breaks into the choruses that blister with catharsis.

Burnt at the Stake is the first single to drip from the forthcoming EP, Field Crow, which will drop on November 13th. Make sure wych elm is on your radar for the deliverance of it and in your gig calendar for when they embark on their UK tour from the same date.

Burnt at the Stake was officially released on September 30th; stream it on all major platforms via this link.

Review by Amelia Vandergast

Nina Hain became the cover girl of Riot Grrrl in 2023 with her debut single, I Have a Name

Posted on 6 July 2023

The Canadian-born, Zurich and London-based multi-instrumentalist, classically trained singer and songwriter Nina Hain revived the Riot Grrrl movement with the monolithically fierce beguile in her debut single, I Have a Name.

Produced by Rocky O’Reilly and Mastered by Robin Schmidt (Liam Gallagher, Nothing But Thieves), the polished single is as impeccable as you would expect. But, somewhat ironically, in the context of the single, Nina Hain isn’t an artist that is going to skate through her career by high-profile association.

The stellar songwriting, which allows you to roll with all the stridently liberating crescendos led by her resounding vocal timbre, proves that she’s got the lyricality to make as much of a bruising impact as Bikini Kill, Sleater-Kinney and L7. But make no mistake; this is far from your average all-edge-and-no-substance 90s throwback hit. The musicality of the single allows Nina Hain to stand alongside icons such as Honeyblood, Wolf Alice, and Black Honey as she uses her resounding voice as a protest to female oppression.

Expect plenty more from Hain as she continues to work with the Zurich-based indie label, Nekonen Records, to deliver a string of singles in the lead-up to her debut EP, due for release in Spring 2024.

I Have a Name hit the airwaves on June 30th; stream it on YouTube.

Review by Amelia Vandergast

The gloves are off in Tough on Fridays’ swaggeringly infectious indie alt-rock hit, The Awakening

Posted on 8 April 2023

Taken from their trailblazing alt-rock, indie, and grunge amalgam of an LP, The Encore You Didn’t Ask For, Tough on Fridays’ standout single, The Awakening, is a sure-fire hit of vindication for anyone who knows how bitter-sweet goodbyes can be when betrayal was the final parting shot.

With the same energy as Shitlist by L7, the grungy and Riot Grrrl to the core powerhouse lived up to the hype that has been brewing around them as they’ve taken the Texas music circuit by storm in the last six years.

The compellingly raw vocal lines add a demure touch to the swaggering power rock instrumental aesthetics of the track, which prove how much Tough on Fridays has honed their sound. Their infectious scream-the-chorus-from-the-top-of-your-lungs appeal is only getting more visceral with each new release.

It’s rare to find an outfit offering as much substance as style, but Tough on Fridays is anything but your run-of-the-mill paint-by-numbers outfit. Their soul, scorn and scuzzy riffs are just a few of the reasons you should reserve a place for them on your radar.

The Awakening is now available to stream on Spotify.

Review by Amelia Vandergast

Izzy and the Black Trees reached the pinnacle of empowering post-punk with their standout single, Liberate

Posted on 22 January 2023

London-based Polish powerhouse Izzy and the Black Trees barbed the post-punk genre with socially progressive spikes in the standout single, Liberate, taken from their second album, Revolution Comes in Waves. It’s easily the best thing to happen to post-punk since Christian Death unleashed Only Theatre of Pain in ’82; at least this LP is provocative for all the right reasons!

Izzy Rekowska’s organically magnetic vocal lines come alive around the calls for a better future for women the world over as the tribally awakening drums add a commanding backbeat around the psych-tinged guitars that will be a hit with Poison Ivy and Glenn Branca fans.

It isn’t every day you encounter a band that is so alchemically more than the sum of all creative parts. Izzy and the Black Trees have exactly what it takes to take you on a scintillating ride that opens your mind to the possibility of a future where feminist records only serve to show us how far we have come – not how far we have to go.

Following the release of the sophomore LP, Izzy and the Black Trees will be hitting UK festival stages, including Sound City in Liverpool – you won’t want to miss it.

Listen to Liberate and the LP in full on Spotify.

Follow the band on Facebook and Instagram.

Review by Amelia Vandergast

Bleach Bath – Branches: The Only Sludge Pop Debut You Need To Year This Year

Posted on 20 December 2022

With the rhythm section dripping as much sex appeal as the most aphrodisiacal tracks on the Deftones’ White Pony album, the alt-90s oozing from the droning walls of shoegaze guitars that have been distorted out-of-kilter and the killer sludgy pop hooks, the debut single, Branches, from the Tennessee-based artist, Bleach Bath, is beyond promising.

The tinges of emo to the lyricism, which runs through the insecurities that every girl will have battled with at some age, ensured Bleach Bath came out with all vulnerable guns blazing. It is impossible not to get on a level with the singer-songwriter and band frontwoman who has been tearing up stages across Tennessee, priming herself to make an unforgettable debut.

Any fans of Honeyblood, Wolf Alice, Ex Hex, Hole and My Bloody Valentine won’t want to skip this grungy kaleidoscopic dream of uninhibited angst and relatable uncertainty.

Branches was officially released on December 2nd. Check it out on Spotify.

Review by Amelia Vandergast

Ruby Sue resisted the silence of alienation in her coming-of-age alt-rock debut album, The Need

Posted on 31 August 2022

The Riot Grrrl attitude is living vicariously through Ruby Sue’s debut album, The Need, but make no mistake, she is an icon of her own making. The true definition of punk is a little hazy these days, but if it doesn’t encompass an artist bringing classical strings into a visceral protest of alienation, what is even the point?

Usually, there is little resonance to be found in coming-of-age albums for anyone that isn’t… coming of age, but The Need extends a sense of compassion for the unheard that can stretch across the generations. Even at 32 years old, the singles, especially the title single, struck a raw note within me.

The sweet melodious temperament of Taylor Swift, the nostalgic comfort of Brandi Carlile and the protestive grungy furore of Courtney Love all fuse together to make The Need an LP that is as cathartic as it is anarchically emboldening. The Minneapolis singer-songwriter and multi-instrumentalist clearly has a natural talent when it comes to consoling expression with her lyricism that lays it all bare in true rock star fashion.

With some of the singles, such as the mostly instrumental Let Me Out, the violin and viola strings bring an extra edge of cutting emotion, ensuring that there’s no getting to the end of this LP until you’ve felt an unholy amount of empathy for anyone enduring the process of growing into adulthood in these times that can send you off-kilter in a single heartbeat.

In her own words, here is what Ruby Sue had to say about her debut album:

“During my gap year between high school and college last year, I was feeling lost and trying to find myself; I found music. I’ve always been a musician, but music was the only thing that felt right when everything else felt off. The lyrics and melodies rushed out of me like a burst dam.

The Need tells a true story of needing to be seen, heard and experience life. Growing up isn’t easy; it can feel daunting and lonely; the ultimate message is that if you feel the need to be seen, you are not alone.”

The Need is now available to stream on Spotify.

Follow Ruby Sue on Instagram and TikTok.

Review by Amelia Vandergast