Sometimes it’s better to open up your ears and let the music do the talking.
This London-based five-piece shun discussion of trends and genre classification in favour of ghostly storytelling and irreverent camaraderie. “If I was invisible for the day I would probably just sit around anywhere, may steal a Lucozade from Tesco and shoot some toothpaste at people,” quips drummer Jonny Rogoff.
Yuck don’t take any shit from anyone. Sonically and aesthetically hip without ever appearing vacuous or superficial, making music is their raison d’etre. That’s all.
Just don’t mention the Nineties. “This whole grunge revival thing is obviously ridiculous,” exclaims the band’s decidedly candid vocalist Daniel Blumberg. “What is grunge anyway? I don’t know how to define it, I don’t know any grunge bands apart from Nirvana.”
A cacophony of feedback, noise, drone and jangle-pop, instrumentalist Max Bloom modestly plays down the band’s undeniable uniqueness. “It’s not like we’re the first band ever to use feedback or guitars – there have never stopped being guitar bands,” he says. “These New Puritans are a good example of a band who have consistently been making albums. The lo-fi way they record is just sonically part of their sound.”
Having recorded their debut in a variety of locations, from Max’s parents’ house to a studio in Shoreditch, February sees its eagerly anticipated release. And if their dry sense of humour pervades their music, then we can only expect great things.
Words by April Welsh
Photos by Ben Meadows
Where: London
What: Guitar driven indie
Unique Fact: Johnny and Daniel met in the Israeli desert.
Get 3 songs: ‘Suicide Policemen’, ‘Rubber’, ‘Georgia’
