ALBUM: She Drew The Gun – ‘Behave Myself’

Personifying the spirit of rebellion, She Drew The Gun‘s uncompromising, genre-defying third LP, Behave Myself, is a rallying cry of fuzzy psych-pop hooks and lyrical protest, unafraid to fight the social and political dystopia we find ourselves heading towards.

Founded by Merseyside-based songwriter Louisa Roach, She Drew The Gun’s musical evolution parallels the decline of our political climate; beginning with 2016’s optimistic indie rock of Memories of Another Future, through to the political dissent of psychedelic sophomore effort, 2018’s Revolution of Mind, and now the immediacy of Behave Myself‘s punk flavoured pop revolution. Opening with the infectious basslines and disorientating synth assault of ‘Origin Song’, Roach introduces her lockdown long play with a certain degree of restraint, before tearing into the persistent inequality promoted by the societal mainstream on track number 2, prompting the question: “Who do you think is ‘Next On The List'”?

The anthemic title track ‘Behave Myself’ is for everyone standing together in feminist solidarity. Exploding into a cataclysm of throbbing basslines, true shred guitar, and spoken word social commentary, Roach shows off her strong pop sensibility but does not shy away from her deep-rooted punk rock attitude – “Get ready for my dangerous soul”, You can’t control her… Louisa Roach will not behave herself! “I am the rage of all women condensed to the point of explosion.” 

The dreamy melodies of ‘Diamonds in Our Eyes’ are followed by ‘Cut Me Down’, a grungey, post-punk protest anthem inspired by the Las Tesis feminist protest song of Chile, known as ‘The Rapist Is You’ or ‘A Rapist in Your Path’. Amplified by hard-hitting drum strikes, driving basslines, and a piercing guitar solo, Roach fights “deeper, faster, harder, cheaper, stronger, further, smarter!” And her frustration doesn’t falter during the scathing lyrical observations of ‘Class War (How Much)’, a psych-pop war song on class divide and “the parasitic vampires sucking our blood.”

The shimmering electroclash of synth and spoken word stream of consciousness on ‘Panopticon’ further showcases Louisa Roach’s evolution of sound; distorting any preconceived opinion of She Drew the Gun through eclectic inspiration and experimentation. The raucous fuzzy soundscape of ‘Innerspeak’ leads into dystopian mood shifter ‘All Roads to Nowhere’ – a juxtaposition of metallic melancholy and ethereal psychedelia – before closing with the vocal warmth of ‘The Rose’s Tale’.

Produced and mixed by Ross Orton at McCall Sound Studios, Behave Myself‘s intelligent, socially-charged lyricism, justified anthemic angst, and DIY political pop amplifies the voice of dissent through punk rock rebellion with a feminist vibe. Challenging us to observe, analyse, and critique a failing system, She Drew the Gun’s unsettling, authentic record is the unstoppable soundtrack for the rebel to revolt to; the sound of collective conscience awoken.

Behave Myself is out now via Submarine Cat Records.

Ken Wynne
@Ken_Wynne

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Track Of The Day: Peaness – ‘What’s The Use?’

Originally planned for release in summer 2020, ‘What’s The Use?‘ is the latest single from Chester trio Peaness, taken from their debut album due out in 2022.

It drops in bright and makes its statement immediately: What’s the use? Throughout, the track is upbeat and fun, with bouncy strings, a fast beat and cheery-sounding vocals. It’s an addictive and absorbing sound that is impossible not to bop along with.

The lyrics, on the other hand, do not share the same sense of limitless joy. Instead, they go into quite a bit of detail about how it feels to be thoroughly depressed. The song acutely describes the feeling of a sigh that carries the weight of the world in it. The refrain “Can I just stay in bed?” repeats and repeats until you can’t escape the utter lack of motivation to get up and engage with the world. Finally, the eponymous “what’s the use?” carries the overwhelming feeling of all the inescapable pressure that won’t leave you be, even when you do manage to drag yourself out of bed.

I absolutely adore the juxtaposition of the two massively contrasting styles between the music and the lyrics, it’s so delightfully nihilistic. It encapsulates a relatable sense of freedom that comes with accepting that, actually yeah, things are pointless sometimes.

The song has been released alongside a video compiled of phone footage of various shenanigans shot on the band’s previous tours. It matches the music in terms of its fast pacing and general sense of joy, and adds another layer of complexity to the content. You see the band on their adventures, in nice restaurants, at landmarks, at funfairs, playing gigs, practicing, stroking their pets. It feels like an immensely powerful comment about what depression can look like, about how you can seem like you’re living your best life while all your lowest feelings are still very much present.

You can feel how the past eighteen months have shaped the song. Even without the context of the pandemic, the full piece feels incredibly meaningful. When you add in the global trauma we all share right now, it becomes all the more powerful, as the clips and music become happy memories experienced from that all-consuming bed in the lyrics.

‘What’s The Use?’ is a brilliantly constructed song and so, so catchy. The 2022 album can’t come soon enough.

‘What’s The Use?’ is out now via the band’s own label, Totally Snick Records. Catch them live at their biggest ever London headline show at Oslo on 18th November. Tickets here.

Kirstie Summers
@ActuallyKurt

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Track Of The Day: Aislinn Logan – ‘Contender’

A deceptively sweet electro-pop gem that gently grapples with the idea of changing destructive behaviours, Belfast-born, London-based artist Aislinn Logan has shared her latest single ‘Contender’. Lifted from her new EP which is set for release on 11th November, the track is a shimmering, synth-soaked ode to anyone who’s struggling to make a positive change in their lives.

Co-produced with Johnny Oakley and Brian Kelly, the sounds on ‘Contender’ are influenced by Aislinn’s love of 80s synth-rock icons New Order and her lyrics are informed by her own experience of trying to help someone change their problematic behaviour. “Sway away from pain with your game face on” she urges with her lush vocals, floating over buoyant melodies. Her infectious synths and compassionate lyrics combine to make ‘Contender’ an empowering and enjoyable slice of electro-pop.

“’Contender’ sprang from some fairly dark subject matter but ended up sounding quite sunny,” Aislinn explains. “It was a little while into writing that I realised that was deliberate. I wanted it to offer a moment of relief to the listener. It’s the wanting to pick someone you care about up, relating to them but feeling quite helpless to do anything useful too. It’s daring someone to back themselves – their actual self, and stop running.”

Listen to ‘Contender’ below.

 

Follow Aislinn Logan on bandcamp, Twitter, Instagram, Spotify & Facebook

Kate Crudgington
@KCBobCut

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ALBUM: Liz Lawrence – ‘The Avalanche’

Liz Lawrence released her third studio album in September this year. She wrote, performed and produced the entire album herself in a studio she built from scratch with her dad on the site where her grandfather’s garden shed had stood unopened for twenty years. Lawrence christened the studio ‘The Coffin’ and, whilst the album certainly has an underlying preoccupation with death, the sounds Lawrence has created within The Coffin’s walls are the furthest thing from a funeral dirge. The Avalanche is full of nonchalant, alt-pop bangers, pleasingly building on all of the promise Lawrence demonstrated on her earlier releases, Pity Party and Bedroom Hero.

Lawrence’s delivery is laconic and understated bringing a wry sensibility to each track. Vocally, she treads a path somewhere between Sharon Van Etten and Lana Del Ray, but weaves her lyrics over danceable distorted bass and guitar lines reminiscent of The Dandy Warhols. Album opener ‘Down for Fun’ sets the tone for the album perfectly with Lawrence detailing the death of a rabbit owned by a guy who wears a jester’s hat then inviting “everybody back to mine” and declaring she’s “down for fun, down for anything”. The album is a party, but with ever foreboding memento mori themes running softly in the background.

‘Violent Speed’ and ‘Where the Bodies Are Buried’ further exemplify this. ‘Violent Speed’ gives a blunt and grittily visceral description of a decapitation and ‘Where the Bodies Are Buried’ includes these brilliantly dark lyrics describing a relationship in its final throes:

“I left the heating on
And now I’m gonna knit you a sweater
A gorgeous afternoon
And I’ve been digging holes in the garden
All for one and one for you
But I know where the bodies are buried…”

As dark as Lawrence’s lyrics may be, The Avalanche is a helluva lot of fun. The album was in part inspired by Tacita Dean’s huge, seven-metre drawing, The Montafon Letter, which refers to a disaster in the Montafon Valley in Austria where an avalanche buried three hundred people. Lawrence explains, “…a priest went to the site to officiate the burial, and another avalanche buried him, and then finally another avalanche came and unburied the priest”. On The Avalanche, Lawrence skilfully plays with the idea that what destroys you might just save you too. 


The Avalanche is out now on Kartel.

Kate O’Sullivan

Photo Credit: Asia Werbel

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