EP: Gravey – ‘Who’s Yer Daddy?’

South London band Gravey’s debut EP Who’s Yer Daddy, is all gravy, baby. I know that sounds cheap, but I had to and it is. This is a band that know their way around how a song should be, with tight bass openings and gravelled vocals that puts all forebears to shame.

Delicious guitar licks put an extra finesse on three tracks that may very well be one of indie London’s sounds of the future. As broad a spectrum as that is, Gravey slides (un)comfortably into the category of the impossible to define. The vocals roar, the guitar soars, and the layers of music meld as they should.

Each listen is better than the last, and band members Soraya Fernandez, Nick White, Sian Bride and Andrea Adriano have done wonders turning their self-proclaimed slutpunk into punk rock with soul. Adriano and White are also responsible for the incredibly neat production.

Every track on the EP has a different message, with the lyrical standout Community Health taking on the mental health crisis with the ever-true statement: “It’s another class war.” On the other hand, ‘Enlighten Me’ is an intergalactic love song (isn’t love intergalactic in and of itself?) and opening banger ‘Self Esteem’ is about loving yourself.

I’m still working on that personally, but what I can say for sure is I love this EP. The esteem can come later, hopefully dripping with that smooth marriage of wah-wah whammy guitar, bass, drums, and steaming hot vocals like that of Gravey… Baby.

 

Who’s Yer Daddy is out now. Stream it on Spotify and buy on Bandcamp.

Em Burfitt
@fenderqueer

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EP: Argonaut – ‘The New Argonaut EP’

Whilst the original Argonauts were heroes of ancient times, sailing off on an epic quest in search of mythic treasure, the more singularly named Argonaut represent a group of indie-pop heroines creating their own musical treasure. Since releasing third album Forever last year, the band have undergone a line-up change, incorporating additional female members including former luminaries of legendary indie groups Hefner and Monochrome Set and UK Riot Grrrls Linus. Despite that lineage, the five-piece are still true to their DIY roots, The New Argonaut EP was recorded near live at Bally Studios with reassuringly light production.

The Riot Grrrl + indie-pop sandwich structure of the band is reflected in the EP’s running order. Opener ‘You Are’, with its gutter-deep bassline, Slits-style harmonies and choppy lead guitar, has a sinister and bitter irony in its simplicity. “You are a beautiful creature” is the refrain in the chorus – a celebration of women, possibly, or maybe also a comment on the less than charming ways men like to describe them. Closer ‘Girl Talk’ reprises the deep-bass and slashy guitar, but in more praiseworthy, upbeat style. It’s middle-eight handclaps are soulful (and almost gospel) in nature, before its closing coda goes into Le Tigre anthemic electro-rock, underscored by a swirly guitar line that shimmers before crunching the EP to a close.

Inbetween are two classic slices of off-kilter indie-pop. The first, ‘Since Yesterday’, is a cover of Glasgow duo Strawberry Switchblade’s song of the same name. Where the original was an electronic melange, this is a stripped-back version with the synths replaced by guitar feedback. It’s a reminder of the inherent contrast at the heart of twee indie: beautiful harmonies meeting angular post-punk experimentation. Following the cover is a return to one of Argonaut’s own songs – ‘March!’, taken from Forever. With its swoopy, pleading vocals, crooning guitars and deliriously contrasting male backing vocals, the track could be plucked directly from the Sarah Records back-catalogue.

Released on Analogue Rock – run by one former bassist, Joules – and available exclusively through KeyMailOrder – run by a different former bassist, Paul, The New Argonaut EP is indie through and through. The band’s press release, penned by their own guitarist, even mentions that the band had stormed through the recording session in just six hours: two hours less than originally booked. And, if it’s not the most slick and stately voyage you’ll ever embark on, at least with Argonaut, you’re not going to feel fleeced.

The New Argonaut EP is out 24th August, order it here. Catch Argonaut live at Byline Festival this Sunday, 26th August.

John McGovern
@etinsuburbiaego

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EP: Militant Girlfriend – ‘Militant Girlfriend’

Tell me girls in grunge died off in the ’90s and I’ll happily inform you that the word grunge was merely a byproduct of the human need to label just about everything. Be it Marilyn Manson or Mark Arm who coined the term first, it’s boring, and not befitting the bands whose influence can be heard in Militant Girlfriend’s brand new self-titled EP.

While I hate comparing bands to others who have gone before, I do so in the way that no two bands are the same, and every member of them is uniquely brilliant of their own accord. It’s not that Militant Girlfriend sound like they’re from the early ’90s, or other bands I’ve reviewed have been from a similar era or different, but that they could, back in the day, very easily have shared a bill with the likes of Veruca Salt and L7 or 7 Year Bitch (or at one of our Get in her Ears nights, which bring about the same feeling – which they did a few months ago!).

 

Militant Girlfriend’s solidly chromatic harmonies give their self-proclaimed queer as fuck rock music layers, and their voices work well together, often spinning different tales in the same few words like their forebears Post and Gordon or the Deals. Their EP proves that, in music, minimalism can be everything and more, that all a girl needs to do to start her own band is pick up a guitar and do it. Strong riffs, great vocals, highlight of the collection ‘Marge’ is like vintage Radiohead and Mazzy Star were thrown into a blender and then poured into a fine pint glass with a fancy design. This is a track that stands out on a brilliant album by a band that know how to work: together.

Militant Girlfriend is available to buy now on Bandcamp.

Em Burfitt
@fenderqueer

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EP: Fistymuffs – ‘About Time’

If you’re still sitting back waiting for the return of the riot, you’ve been doing so with your ears covered. Scottish three-piece punk outfit Fistymuffs‘ upcoming EP, About Time, is a fantastic soundtrack to what they represent. What that is? “What we’re singing about is relatable to 90% of the audience,” answers bassist, Patty.

The original punk rock came off the back of a political climate that alienated youth. It doesn’t stand to question why, in the decades that followed Thatcher – before the banking crisis and the housing crisis and the flurry of food bank necessity for the working people – the privileged few said punk was dead.

About Time opens with ‘Innocent Contact’ and its jarring monologue; the kind that will undoubtedly spur choruses of cis white male journalists to utter the word patriarchy. While the EP does tackle the rejection of patriarchy, the lyrics are pulled from personal experience that touches on abuse regardless of gender.

“Get away, stay away, I don’t want your innocent contact” are the lyrics that make up the earworm chorus, making the opening track the most powerful on the record. It’s a track that harks to the legacy created by Kathleen Hanna and Donita Sparks, where screams are more valuable than words.

Third track, ‘Time’ introduces a more Mancunian sound, with echoes of Joy Division and New Order taking over. Drummer Nikki, in particular, being from Manchester, is massively influenced by both bands, and it shows – “Diverse influences are what give our sound an edge.”

Fistymuffs certainly have an edge, and anyone who wants the world to stop suffering in silence by speaking out will find an idyllic companion in About Time.

 

About Time will be released as a physical copy on 28th July at Leith Depot and on Bandcamp the following day. Follow Fistymuffs on Facebook and Twitter.

Em Burfitt
@fenderqueer

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