Video Premiere: The Dead Zoo – ‘Bruise’

Having wowed us all with their fiercely joyous energy headlining a packed out album launch show at New River Studios a couple of weeks back, London post-punk faves The Dead Zoo are now sharing a brand new video ahead of their debut album’s release on 25th July.

Showcasing The Dead Zoo’s ability to create immersive, brooding soundscapes, ‘Bruise‘ reflects on both the pain and triumph of transformation. Combining swirling atmospherics with ’80s-inspired dark basslines, the sonic equivalent of a nocturnal drive through a Lynchian landscape is created; a mood which is perfectly visualised through the cinematic splendour of this new video. As the resonant gritty power of front woman Kaoru Sato’s vocals glisten throughout, ‘Bruise’ offers a pulsating, multi-layered soundscape that will captivate the senses on first listen.

The new video for ‘Bruise’, directed by Stacy Picard, is out now – let yourself be swallowed up by its raw shimmering majesty.


‘Bruise’ is the first single to be taken from The Dead Zoo’s upcoming debut album, Suspects. Three years in the making, Suspects refracts listeners through the intangible prisms of introspection, reflection, self-discovery and hope. With this latest release, The Dead Zoo harness all the post-punk verve, rousing guitar noise and queer dreamy energy that you could ever desire. The album was recorded with producer James Aparicio (Grinderman, Spiritualized, Depeche Mode, Throw Down Bones). 


Suspects is set for release on 25th July, pre-order here. And you can catch The Dead Zoo live on 26th July at the Trans Pride After Party at Walthamstow Trades Hall – tickets here.



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Video Premiere: Piney Gir – ‘Show Me The Lightning’

Having toured the UK, Europe, Australia and America extensively over the years – singing and playing keys/percussion with Gaz Coombes, performing and arranging backing vocals for Noel Gallagher, and supporting the likes of Ride, The Brian Jonestown Massacre and The Magic Numbers (to name a few!) -, Piney Gir has recently released her new EP, Cosmic Upside Down. Completing a magical trilogy of releases, following Alchemy Hand in 2022 and its predecessor Astral Spectra in 2021, the EP marks twenty years since Piney Gir released her first album, Peakahokahoo. Touching on themes ranging from climate change to feminism, it maintains the spiritual roots and majestic immersive splendour that we’ve come to know and love from the self-proclaimed ‘witch’ of indie-pop.

Taken from the EP, ‘Show Me The Lightning‘ sees Piney embracing the storm of her emotions. Dripping in psychedelic synths and glistening reverb, it offers a powerful slice of retro garage-rock, complete with ’60s-inspired organs and cyclical guitar, as Piney declares she “wants to feel it all”. Impossible not to get caught up in its jaunty, lilting energy and the sparkling allure of Piney’s lush honey-sweet vocals, it offers an uplifting and captivating ode to the power of the natural elements; recognising how weathering a storm can help us to grow. She explains:

“In the song I kind of dare the elements to pull out all the stops! Like, give it to me, I want to feel it all!  And that’s true, I want to feel everything, the good and the bad, the highs and the lows. I think it’s important to be in touch with the whole spectrum of emotion & not numb the stormy weather, but to go with it.”

‘Show Me The Lightning’ is accompanied by a brand new new video, created and directed by Parenthesis Dot Dot Dot. Depicting Piney Gir as a quirky, witchy weather girl, and featuring appearances from an ominichord, dog puppets and even an ‘omin-dog’, it offers a wonderfully off-kilter visualisation of the track; a fun-filled tale of supernatural forces which is not to be missed! Talking about the inspirations behind the making of the video, the director explains:

“The original idea came from one of Nick Cave’s documentaries about when he moved to the UK, and began obsessively writing about the weather in an altered state. So much so that he started to believe that he was in control of the weather. It then spiralled out of control and became something bigger, a sort of weird Tim Burton-esque B-movie thing involving special effects and puppets!“

Piney adds:

“I love how deranged and happy he coaxed me to be as the weather girl filling the world with storms… I really enjoyed the bit where I bring the Omni-dog to life. I can’t believe Parenthesis made that dog puppet overnight, its teeth were made of rubber bands, and it fit perfectly around my Omnichord! Was ridiculously fun shooting this!“

Watch the “ridiculously fun” new video for ‘Show Me The Lightning’, for the first time, here:


Cosmic Upside Down, the new EP from Piney Gir, is out now on No Distance Records. Download / listen on bandcamp now. And don’t miss a special night celebrating 20 years since Piney Gir’s first album on 13th October at The Lexington – she’ll be joined by a superstar line-up including Anat Ben-David (Chicks On Speed) and  Psycho Delia (Robots in Disguise) and DJ Chewy She – nab tickets here!

Mari Lane
@marimindles



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Video Premiere: pink suits – ‘C.O.F.F.E.E.’

Ahead of the release of their upcoming second album, Dystopian Hellscape, in April, Margate duo pink suits have now given us another taste of what to expect from the collection. Harking back to their theatrical roots, ‘C.O.F.F.E.E.‘ mashes together a handful of vocal warmups that will be familiar to anyone who was ever part of a drama club. The tune maintains the duo’s signature pink suits punk twist, but marks a slight departure from the political rage typical of their other releases.

‘C.O.F.F.E.E.’ showcases both the skill, and the fun, that infuses every pink suits track with the raw, unfiltered emotion they are fast becoming known for. The screaming vocals, pounding drums and roaring guitars belting out playful upbeat riffs are as absorbing and addictive as anything they’ve released before. 

The track comes with a video that is as high-energy and playful as the track, and charming in its simplicity. The band run through the streets declaring their love for coffee and shot, snort and shower in it. The video makes clever use of limited resources to hammer home the pink suits brand, creating a delightfully engaging and witty visual skit.

While the subject matter on the surface may not seem as profound as the duo’s previous releases – not a biting take down of bigotry or a provocative examination of societal issues – its playfulness and silliness is meaningful in itself. Placed alongside pink suits’ riotous last single, ‘Refuse the Rules‘, although it appears to exude less protest energy as such, ‘C.O.F.F.E.E.’ subtly touches on poignant issues such as addiction and exhaustion. Of the track, the band explain:

“The song is about Coffee. Which is one of a few addictions in our life. One of the less harmful ones. And there is a real necessity to being able to scream together with frantic and childlike energy about it. To have some fun in the face of it all. A lot of our music and life is punk, protest, politics, sex, drugs and rock and roll, and – if you look closely enough – they are all hidden inside this daft little song…”

‘C.O.F.F.E.E.’ is genuinely fun, the kind of song you can enjoy, simply for the sake of enjoying it, the way you did when you were kid. It becomes a reminder of what the revolution is for – to create a world where everyone has the space, freedom and opportunity to be childlike and carefree, to create for the sake of creating and not as part of some larger movement; to appreciate art and beauty simply because it exists. It becomes a reminder to take and treasure those moments of unadulterated fun wherever you can.

In a world that is overwhelmed by issues begging for a lifetime of protest songs, ‘C.O.F.F.E.E.’ offers a break from the onslaught to pause and simply find joy where you can – whether that’s listening to a silly song, or appreciating a proper cup of coffee made in a proper copper coffee pot.

Watch the new video for ‘C.O.F.F.E.E.’ for the first time now:

pink suits’ second album, Dystopian Hellscape, is set for release on 1st April. And make sure you experience the immense energy of the duo live on their headline tour, details below. Tickets will be live soon, so keep an eye out on pink suits’ Instagram for info.

Kirstie Summers
@ActuallyKurt

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Video Premiere: pink suits – ‘Refuse The Rules’

If you’re at all familiar with pink suits, you’ll recognise their unique energy in every element of their new music video for ‘Refuse The Rules‘, the first taste we’ve had of their upcoming second album, Dystopian Hellscape. The whole video drips with their signature style and unapologetic passion.

The video takes place entirely within a two cubicle toilet, wallpapered with newspaper pages. The logos of The S*n and Metro (owned by The Daily Mail Group) leap out at you. An article about gender self-ID “fears” is placed right in the centre of the shot. Before the music even begins, you’re presented with instant commentary about the quality of contemporary journalism – rampant media bias and the painfully uncritical approach to publishing political agendas in the modern press.

‘Refuse The Rules’ is not a long or complicated song. It hones in on its point perfectly. Boiling down the tiresomely endless hours of identity debate into a concise song that barely breaks 100 seconds in length, it is short and sharp, instantly cementing pink suits as expert creators of today’s punk anthems.

With just the opening line – “Our existence doesn’t threaten your existence” – the song immediately highlights the most draining elements of the whole debate. It calls out the hypocrisy of anyone actively threatening another person over their identity, which wouldn’t have any impact at all on other people’s lives if they didn’t choose to stick their oar in. At a time when human lives are under threat every day from war / climate change / poverty / homelessness, even in the wealthiest countries on the planet, this track points out just how ridiculous it is to waste your energy being bigoted. 

The delivery of every line is sharp and urgent, a scream that evokes all the pain, frustration and fear underlying the song’s message, roared over a foundation of aggressive drums and shrieking guitar riffs. The track is packed with earworms that capture the rage effortlessly.

Despite the darkness that necessitates this kind of commentary, ‘Refuse The Rules’ is ultimately uplifting in its defiance – “We refuse the rules. We refuse to bow.” It’s a rejection of conformity and of the hypocrisy of those who manage to conveniently ignore all the real problems in this dystopian hellscape of the modern world to take issue with another human being’s self expression. It’s a riotous call to action for anyone who needs a little extra motivation to embrace their true selves. 

Completely created by pink suits themselves, this new video captures the raging energy of ‘Refuse The Rules’ perfectly. Watch, for the first time, here:

https://youtube.com/watch?v=hU8ECGfx8cQ%3Fsi%3D7SDTdBMzFcDeiZk7

Produced by Halo Halo studio in Margate, ‘Refuse The Rules’ is out now, ahead of pink suits’ second album – Dystopian Hellscape – which is set for release in Spring 2024. But keep you ears and eyes peeled for more teasers in the meantime!

Kirstie Summers
@ActuallyKurt

Photo Credit: Stephen Daly Photography / @stephendalyphotography

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