Track Of The Day: Charmpit – ‘Margot’

Charmpit have indeed been charming our ears, and our hearts, for some time now. With this year’s Jelly EP providing the perfect summer soundtrack, they have also wowed us with their joyous live set when playing for us at The Finsbury a few months back. And now, they continue to spread their empowering, fun-filled message with a brand new video.

Asserting that there is good in the world despite all the bad, ‘Margot’ oozes a sparkling, pop-punk fuzz with all the jangly, shimmering hooks and honey-sweet harmonies that we’ve come to know and love from the band. A short, sweet blast of uplifting, anarchic joy, it highlights the repeated refrain that “every baby is a natural-born punk”; reminding us of the need to nurture the innocence of the young and turn it into goodness and empathy that will last a lifetime.

Of the track, the band explain:

“We wanted to write an anthem for all the parents and carers, to everyone who takes the time to explain to kids why the things they see don’t make sense, how and why our world is messy and imperfect, and what justice could look like… MARGOT is 2 years old and our punk muse: Margot is here to make friends AND to win, their creativity and curiosity keeps us dreaming.”

Watch the joyous new video for ‘Margot’ now (featuring Margot herself – a child that bassist Anne Marie has cared for since she was a baby), and celebrate the beautiful, unifying power of love and friendship in the face of all the world has to throw at us.

Mari Lane
@marimindles

Photo Credit: Jon Mo / @jonmophoto

Get In Her EarsLeave a comment

Track Of The Day: Lazybones – ‘Snake’

If you’re a fan of the shouty aggro of the likes of Slaves, but want some female vocals to go with the no-frills style, then have a listen to Brighton trio Lazybones, and their debut single,’Snake’ – featuring Candi on vox and organ, Joe on bass and Sam on drums.

On the surface, the sound of ‘Snake’ is much like Slaves, or Idles: over-driven, raw and raucous – deriving its power largely from Candi’s gritty singing style and Sam’s percussion. But underneath that, Lazybones’ secret weapon is the deceptively complex fretwork from Joe’s bass guitar and the underlying hum and whirl of that organ.

By the time the bridge arrives, with all the noise and intensity that it brings, the band that you’ll most be thinking of is DFA 1979. It’s that bass-led sound that really comes through after multiple listens to the song, which also bears comparison to some of Deap Vally’s harder-edged tunes. In terms of influences, Lazybones cite the likes of Black Sabbath and Sex Pistols, but it’s their nod to Chas & Dave that seems to demonstrate where their fondness for a succinct rhyming couplet comes from.

The band, in reference to their name, say they’ve been called “lazy for not getting a guitar player”. But, if anything, the video for ‘Snake’ tells a different story – with its commitment to a ’90s bowling alley aesthetic, achieved by playing hand-drawn animations on CRT TVs and recording the images on a VHS camcorder. And that’s true of the band’s sound too – combining wit, artistry, and plenty of venom, Lazybones have got the muscle, but they’ve also got the brains.

Catchy Lazybones live in Brighton on 22nd December at Sticky Mike’s Frog Bar.

John McGovern
@etinsuburbiaego

Get In Her EarsLeave a comment

Track Of The Day: L.A. Witch – ‘Drive Your Car’

Kim Gordon wasn’t wrong in questioning why the Spice Girls’ “girl power” wasn’t “woman power”, but as a 11-year-old kid, all I thought the ‘Say You’ll Be There’ video lacked was instruments. Enter: L.A. Witch on a road trip through the California desert in their new video for the smoke-tainted psychedelia of their debut album’s standout track, ‘Drive Your Car’.

Ashtrays teeming with burnt out cigarettes, two people on the dance floor after everyone else has gone home, the sun coming up over Santa Monica pier… and the band plays on. That’s L.A. Witch’s sound in a nutshell.

L.A. Witch are psych-rock Americana at its finest. Their distinctly Los Angeles sound is reflected in the clanging, distant guitars and the drums being just that little bit louder, front and centre, like the rumbling engines about to fall through the rusted bottom of an old Chevy.

This is a band on the rise, and as the video director Allie Lane explains, “I wanted to evoke a surreal state of adventure that matches the romantic lulls and highs of a road trip.” Its destination? One massive impact in 2018.

L.A. Witch’s self-title debut album is out now via Suicide Squeeze Records. And be sure to catch the girls at one of their newly announced UK shows scheduled for the beginning of next year:

27th March, 2018 – The Chameleon, Nottingham
28th March, 2018 – Sleazy’s, Glasgow
29th March, 2018 – The Cluny, Newcastle
30th March, 2018 – Oslo, Hackney, London
31st March, 2018 – Headrow House, Leeds

Em Burfitt
@fenderqueer

Get In Her EarsLeave a comment

Track Of The Day: Girl As Wave – ‘Houdini’

Dark, ghostly soundscapes coalesce with smokey electronica in the latest offering from Girl As Wave. Throughout ‘Houdini’, her sophisticated and laid back vocal style is calming yet off-setting; the voodoo-tinged indie of the track spellbinding and mesmeric.

A sultry opening hook bleeds into a tangibly soft vocal, ‘Houdini’ floating somwehere in-between languished and ambitiously cavernous. It’s a song that could fit anywhere between a US ghost town and a London bar, with shades of the earthy mysticism of Alexandra Savior and Pumarosa.

Hailing from New York, Girl As Wave combines a folky, lyric-driven approach to songwriting with a love of indie and electronic music. An email collaboration with LA-based producer Jimmy Deer resulted in the completion of her debut EP, Poison Vines and Nectar, set for release in early 2018.

 

Erin Bashford

Get In Her EarsLeave a comment