Track Of The Day: Madame So – ‘Real Friends’

An off-kilter reflection on how friendships change and develop over the course of time, Madame So has shared her latest single ‘Real Friends’. Following on from previous releases ‘Generation Y’, ‘You Say’ and ‘Who Are We To Judge?’ this new offering sees the Paris-born, London-based songwriter tackle the ever-evolving ways we prioritise and reassess our existing relationships.

“This song is about how some friendships can be very superficial, and how some people can be very fickle in their interactions with others and use them to pass-time and/or as playground companions,” Madame So explains. Full of her distinctive vocals, energetic rhythms and eccentric riffs, Madame So reaches the mature realisation that there’s “no U-turn on good memories” once a friendship has reached its expiry date, and that it’s better to move on alone than to drag it out any longer.

Whilst the song deals with a weighty subject, Madame So approaches it with her trademark fun and fierce style, moving past her troubles in a defiant and articulate manner. ‘Real Friends’ comes at a time when we’re all reconsidering the most important parts of our friendships, and it’s a slick observation on how we progress past the obstacles that affect them.

The single is accompanied by a colourful lyric video created by Tomas Santos that you can watch below.

Follow Madame So on bandcamp, Spotify, Twitter, Instagram & Facebook for more updates.

Kate Crudgington
@KCBobCut

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Track Of The Day: Bad Idea – ‘Winter’

A fuzzy, relatable guitar tune that playfully reflects on the desire for escapism whilst working a low paid job, Bad Idea have shared their latest single ‘Winter’. Released in partnership with RoseColoured Records, the Leeds band channel the joys and frustrations that come with growing up through pop-tinged melodies, soft vocals and catchy lyrics on this track.

Formed in 2016 on a drunken night out dancing to Madonna’s ‘Like A Prayer’, Bad Idea’s Sarah Sefton and Daniel Johnson chose the band’s name after entering into a new creative project and a new romantic relationship together at the same time. They put aside their concerns about how this might affect their musical dynamics and enlisted the help of new bandmates Charlie Peacock and Liam Lambert in 2019 to flesh out their lo-fi sounds.

In 2020, the band released their debut EP, the ironically titled I Just Want To Go Home, after recording the tracks intermittently between lockdowns in a friend’s basement. The result of their efforts is a joyful, fuzzy exploration of love, loss, nostalgia and moving on to new experiences. New single ‘Winter’ is a lush example of how the band have trusted their instincts and channelled their energies into creating buoyant, charming tunes.

Listen to ‘Winter’ below.

 

Follow Bad Idea on bandcamp, Spotify, Twitter, Facebook & Instagram

Kate Crudgington
@KCBobCut

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ALBUM: Goat Girl – ‘On All Fours’

With a renewed approach to structuring their songs and a fresh desire to improvise and enjoy the music they’re making, Goat Girl have channelled their joys and frustrations via electronics and FX pedals on their second album On All Fours. Released via Rough Trade Records, this new offering retains the band’s trademark cynical charm, whilst offering listeners a route to escapism through jazz-infused beats and soft vocal melodies.

Guitarist & vocalist Lottie Pendlebury’s calm delivery of mantra-like lyric “I have no shame when I say / step the fuck away” on opener ‘Pest’ epitomises the defiant, dancing tone of On All Fours. Inspired by the colonialist undertones of 2018’s tabloid newspapers who dubbed a storm that hit the UK as the “beast from the east,” the track laments western society’s dangerous habit of “othering” any issues it falsely believes it’s not responsible for – making it the “pest from the west” that Pendlebury sings of.

As with their 2018 self-titled debut album, Goat Girl’s left-wing sensibilities are at the forefront of their song-writing, but they’ve made space for carefree tunes on their new record too. The playfully named ‘Badibaba’ bubbles with jazzy electronics and eccentric time signatures, while ‘Jazz (In The Supermarket)’ showcases how the band’s jamming sessions have blossomed into organised, erratic sounds. The infectiously upbeat ‘Once Again’ and the swaggering rhythms on ‘Sad Cowboy’ and ‘The Crack’ punctuate the album with a light-hearted, but tenacious attitude.

While ‘P.T.S.Tea’ is a fun play on words, it’s underscored by drummer Rosy Jones’ distressing memory of being on tour in 2019. Jones was badly scalded after a random man on a ferry spilled tea on their arm, leaving Jones unable to complete the rest of the band’s dates. The man never apologised, so ‘P.T.S.Tea’ is an aural scald on male accountability and privilege, as well as an exploration of Jones’ own gender identity, reflected in the lyric “to say what I am / well I don’t have a clue.” Jones’ gaze was also fixed on the reversal of gender normative roles when they penned closing track ‘A-Men’ too.

The swirling sounds on ‘Closing In’ are a vibrant personification of Pendlebury’s own struggles with depression, while following track ‘Anxiety Feels’ gives a gentle insight into bassist Ellie Davies’ crippling panic attacks. Her lyrical musings on medication and dealing with negative thought patterns are delivered with tender sincerity. Both songs explore gruelling subjects with genuine charm and care.

The parasitic ‘They Bite On You’ bleeds into the explosively named ‘Bang’, on which Pendlebury extrapolates on the nature of her ego. The woozy sounds of ‘Where Do We Go From Here?’ were born from a weekend retreat where the band spent their time writing, drinking and mocking the intensity of such an ambiguous question. Sweet self-deprecating moments like this galvanized the sound of On All Fours. Goat Girl’s ability to make their second album feel like a light listen despite the contexts of their songs being rooted in difficulty, is a refreshing and admirable quality for band releasing new music in an already tumultuous new year.

Listen to Goat Girls’ new album On All Fours here.

Follow Goat Girl on bandcamp, Spotify, Facebook & Instagram

If you like the sound of Goat Girl’s new album, you can read more about what inspired them to make it in my interview with them for The Line Of Best Fit.

Photo Credit: Holly Whitaker

Kate Crudgington
@KCBobCut

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ALBUM: Divide and Dissolve – ‘Gas Lit’

An exhilarating, powerful assembly of sounds designed to erode the foundations of colonialism and liberate the land for indigenous communities, instrumental activists Divide and Dissolve‘s second album Gas Lit smoulders with a righteous fury. Produced by Ruban Nielson of Unknown Mortal Orchestra, the record is an aural purging of injustice, fuelled by the diversity of Takiaya Reed’s doom-ridden saxophone sounds and Sylvie Nehill’s phenomenal percussion. It’s the band’s first full length release since their 2018 album Abomination, and much like its predecessor it flows with a unique gargantuan grace.

Released via Invada Records, Gas Lit sees Divide and Dissolve continue their sonic mission to disrupt toxic white supremacy. Reed & Nehill’s sublime instinct for colossal drop-ins permeates their music and acts as a powerful weapon in the fight against inequality. These cathartic shifts in sound saturate Gas Lit, and opening track ‘Oblique’ is the first of many aural shockwaves to hit listeners. Silence in a world of inequality is damaging and Divide and Dissolve seek to shatter the illusions surrounding this. The intense grit of ‘Prove It’ continues to hammer this message home, with its pulverizing beats and caustic riffs.

The pensive spoken words of poet Minori Sanchiz-Fung on ‘Did You Have Something To Do With It’ bring to life a poignant question that underscores the record: “are [we] a part of this world / or its affliction?” It bleeds into the epic seven and a half minute ‘Denial’, which is a disorientating sonic whirlwind of thunderous riffs, ear-shattering percussion and uncanny saxophone notes. The visceral sounds on ‘Far From Ideal’ and ‘It’s Really Complicated’ beautifully embellish the band’s narrative charge against oppression and provide more riotous cacophonies to escape into.

On ‘Mental Gymnastics’ and ‘We Are Really Worried About You’ Reed flexes more of her extraordinary sax-playing muscles and her ear for intense riff distortion. On the latter, they’re combined with Nehill’s crashing cymbals to form a swirling vortex of cathartic dissonance, reiterating the band’s message that the sufferings of indigenous communities have evolved beyond what’s “recorded in stone / and in bone.” The resentment and need to overcome this is now so strong that – in the words of Minori Sanchiz-Fung – “language can’t console it.” Divide and Dissolve are here to give weight and validation to these voices, and Gas Lit is a majestic and moving effort to do so.

Pre-order your copy of Divide and Dissolve’s new album Gas Lit here.

Follow Divide and Dissolve on bandcamp, Instagram, Spotify, Twitter & Facebook

Photo Credit: Billy Eyers

Kate Crudgington
@KCBobCut

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