NEW TRACK: The Pearl Harts – ‘Hypocritical’

Described as a “bratty, fun” song to scream along to, London-based duo The Pearl Harts have shared their latest single ‘Hypocritical’. Lifted from their upcoming second album Love, Chaos, which is set for release on 21st April via Double Bang Records, the track is full of swaggering riffs, commanding beats and chant-worthy lyrics that bite back at the restrictive stereotypes surrounding women in rock.

“’Hypocritical’ is influenced by the hi-octane pop of Miley Cyrus and Gwen Stefani with the punk attitude of ‘Impeach My Bush’-era Peaches,” the band explain. “It’s an empowerment song for women and girls taking on the world.” Following on from their previous single ‘More’ – a defiant declaration of self-autonomy that demands listener’s full attention – The Pearl Hart’s latest cut flows in a similarly unapologetic vein.

Across the twelve tracks that make up their new album, Love Chaos, which they produced in collaboration with Danio (Husky Loops, Kari Faux), the duo reflect on what it means to stay true to themselves in the face of adversity – whether that’s on a personal or industry level.

“As women in rock’n’roll we have had to fight and unpick a load of history and patterns to accept ourselves as we are today,” they explain, “Shake off the ‘good girls’ we have been brought up to be’, not to become ‘bad’ but to become our real, true, authentic selves. We are starting a new conscious pattern of how we want to play rock’n’roll our way. We don’t just have to be hard, tough women. We can be sensitive ones too.”

Fuelled by this new attitude, The Pearl Harts will be touring their new music across the UK & Ireland this Spring, with HotWax as support. Full details below.

Watch the video for ‘Hypocritical’ here:

The Pearl Harts UK Tour Dates 2023
3rd May ST ALBANS The Horn
4th May NORWICH Voodoo Daddy’s
16th May LONDON The Lower Third
17th May BRIGHTON The Prince Albert
18th May PORTSMOUTH Edge of the Wedge
19th May BRISTOL The Lanes
25th May BELFAST Voodoo
26th May DUBLIN, The Workmans Cellar
27th May LIMERICK Kasbah

Follow The Pearl Harts on bandcamp, Spotify, Twitter, Instagram & Facebook

Photo Credit: @del_photos

Kate Crudgington
@KCBobCut

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New Track: The Empty Page – ‘Level Sedentary’

In a world that moves so quickly, it’s refreshing to hear a song that praises slowness. The second single from previous GIHE headliners The Empty Page’s second album, ‘Level Sedentary’, is an empowering slice of ’90s-inspired indie rock, which applauds the time we spend doing nothing at all. 

Front person Kel explains: “I heard John Cooper Clarke say something like, you need two things to be a writer, a pen and idleness. I want to celebrate idleness in this song.” And the band certainly does. Kel’s gritty vocals are long and languid as she sings about being flat and still, buoyed further by fuzzy layers of instrumentation courtesy of guitarist Giz. 

The song’s middle section is a chaotic clash of experimental piano and doom-laden distorted guitar, reminiscent of Sonic Youth. This helps to make ‘Level Sedentary’ a whopping four and a half minutes long, so it’s far from a punchy pop banger. Instead, it’s a song that you can really bask in and savour; much like those idle, lazy days that Kel sings of.

Produced by Morton Kong, ‘Level Sedentary’ is out now.

Vic Conway
@thepicsofvic

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ALBUM: Ailbhe Reddy – ‘Endless Affair’

“My God look at the state of me / this is so embarrassing” sings Irish songwriter Ailbhe Reddy, scrutinising her drunken reflection on ‘Shitshow’, the opening track to her latest album, Endless Affair. Following on from 2020’s debut full length release, Personal History, on her new record Reddy finds the sweet spot between romantic melancholy, unfiltered shame and wry humour, as she re-frames her fractured memories of nights spent partying in her early 20s and various fluctuating loves and infatuations.

Written and recorded between January 2019 and October 2020, Reddy paired up with producer Tommy McLaughlin again to co-produce Endless Affair. She relished the opportunity to create a truly rounded sound on the record, which maintains the raw spirit of her debut, but showcases a development in her intuition for writing songs that continue to tap into both a personal and universal vein.

Whether she’s admiring the unique way the light defines her partner’s body on ‘Shoulderblades’, or feeling the walls closing in on ‘Last To Leave’, Reddy’s skill for revisiting a moment and making it more poignant – or more painful – than before is the lifeblood of Endless Affair. “It’s not just your drink you’re spilling / to anybody who will listen” she observes on the latter, over gentle beats and considered instrumentation, softening the awkward reality of the situation. It’s a relatable reflection on wanting to atone for potentially embarrassing behaviour – whether personally, or vicariously.

Reddy presents her emotions with endearing and at times excruciating honesty, learning to “take love where it’s planted” on the beautifully sincere ‘Bloom’, revealing the rawness of the wounds left by a breakup on ‘Damage’, and remembering a period of painful apathy on ‘Inhaling’. She explores all these things with charm, wit and impressive grace. This is especially true of ‘Pray For Me’ – dedicated to her late Grandmother – and moving ode ‘Motherhood’, which the songwriter nurtured and developed multiple times throughout the album’s recording process.

Whilst tenderness flows through the veins of Endless Affair, it’s also permeated with moments of recklessness and humour. This is epitomized especially by Reddy’s half-hearted attempts to verbally get under an ex’s skin on ‘ILYW’ (‘I’m Losing You’re Winning’), and the the rolling rhythms and energetic riffs on ‘A Mess’. A reflection on an early, chaotic relationship, the track is a buoyant rumination on the cyclical nature of bad habits and a lively effort to move past them. Whilst the repetition of the titular lyric ‘A Mess’ could sting if it was delivered differently, Reddy claims it as a lighthearted label, accepting that youth and inexperience are all part of the learning process when it comes to forming healthy relationships.

Ultimately, Endless Affair is a patient, earnest reflection on personal growth and a heartening reminder that we’re all just ‘Amateurs’ trying to make sense of the bruises that mysteriously materialise on our bodies the morning after we’ve had too much of a good time. It reaffirms Reddy’s astute songwriting sensibilities and is a tonic for any extended emotional hangover.

Follow Ailbhe Reddy on bandcamp, Spotify, Twitter, Instagram & Facebook

Photo credit: Niamh Barry

Kate Crudgington
@KCBobCut

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EP: Grandmas House – ‘Who Am I’

Formed of Yasmin Berndt (vocals, guitar), Poppy Dodgson (vocals, drums) and Zoë Zinsmeister (bass), Grandmas House combine gritty guitars, thudding percussion and a joyful dose of sarcasm to create their catchy punk inspired anthems. The Bristol-based trio released their self-titled debut EP in October 2021, which covered everything from dismantling the patriarchy, celebrating queer love, to a penchant for local pasties. Now, Grandmas House are back with their second EP, Who Am I, another collection of songs that tackle body image, identity and disassociation and negatively stereotyped zodiac signs.

Born from the desire to overcome the discomfort that facing your own reflection can cause, opener ‘Body’ is a riotous cacophony that sets the scathing, cathartic tone of the record. Full of candid vocals and boisterous riffs, the anthem aims to dismantle the strained relationships we have with our own bodies. When the band simultaneously chant “haven’t seen myself for a second of the day / it feels like everyone is growing / and I just stay the same”, they capture the uneasiness of existing in an insecure skin, whilst putting their own corrosive spin on this feeling to alleviate the pressure.

What follows is a a bi-lingual blast of angst on ‘How Does It Feel?’. Pairing Berndt’s passionate French vocal with Dodgson’s visceral English one, the track is “a call and response between two people about the feelings of confusion you go through when breaking up.” It bleeds into the smouldering ‘Desire’. Inspired by the disorientating power of romantic infatuation, Berndt’s raucous voice rises and falls alongside Dodgson’s backing vocals and blistering beats across the track, whilst Zinsmeister’s rumbling basslines enhance the all-consuming yearning that’s explored in the lyrics.

Closing their record with the title track – described as “an anthem by Gemini’s, for all the other Gemini’s out there” – Grandmas House gleefully defy the negative stereotyping surrounding their zodiac sign with charged riffs and commanding beats. Clocking in at just under 8 minutes in total, Who Am I is a blast of raw, frenzied post-punk energy that showcases the trio’s talent for writing defiant, witty guitar tunes that warrant repeated listens.

Grandmas House play live tonight (23rd March) at The Victoria in Dalston. Tickets here.

Follow Grandmas House on TikTok, bandcamp, Spotify, Instagram, Twitter & Facebook

Photo Credit: Rosie Carne

Kate Crudgington
@KCBobCut

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