Earlier this year, Leeds band Thank signed to the independent record label Big Scary Monsters. They now release their second album ‘I Have A Physical Body That Can Be Harmed’. It’s a brash, satirical and stomping collection of songs, with lead vocalist Freddy Vinehill-Cliffe shifting between singing, shouting, speaking and screaming.
‘Control’ is the perfect opener. A wild abrasive start which morphs into a thunderous noise which hangs together, just. And such is the appeal of Thank, they are raw and rough and raucous, and even more fabulous because of it. ‘Woke Frasier’ has a more measured start with pulsating beats. The drums pounding add to the seeming frustration of the Woke generation. Indeed this track perhaps encapsulates Thank at their very best. The noisy instrumentation is combined with sharp observational lyrics with a wicked twist of humour to make their point.
‘Do It Badly’ is another case in point. The lyrics are class, it is so straightforward and seems so obvious, so thank heavens we have Thank to point it out in their own direct fashion – “Do it badly, you can do it badly / Do its badly, its allowed.”
‘The Spores’ is a little slower, a little more measured, a little more sung by Vinehill-Cliffe. The result is a claustrophobic track with the layer of instrumentation dominated by the tetchy anxiety-inducing guitars. ‘Down With The Sickness’ follows with its stomping beat and pounding rhythm before the electric guitar jumps in, set free within the song. ‘Down With The Sickness’ gets increasingly bombastic as it travels, the instrumentation puts a smile on anyone’s face.
The stomping rhythm continues on ‘Barely’, its dancey grooves toying with a heavy bassline and static guitar. And oh my goodness, spoiler alert for your ears right at the very end! ‘Smiling Politely’ is a whirling dervish of a track, in fact the lyrics are a little tricky to decipher (other than “I will have my revenge” on repeat). Smiling politely infers the waste of energy required to put up with individuals, for whatever the reason. “I will have my revenge” seems an appropriate unspoken thought in our heads. ‘Dead Dog In A Ditch’ has one of the best lines on the album “I am a professional child”. Lyrically it’s questioning of oneself but wrapped within a two-minute blast of chaos, all reverb and thunderous drums. What a glorious racket, the pounding drums relentless and the vocal at times screeching with frustration, and listen closely to those final few seconds. Who wants and/or needs crisp sharp clean over-production? Thank give us the real deal. Authentic and true.
‘Perhaps Today’ asks broader questions of society “how can we form an opinion on anything?” asks clearly and precisely. Thought-provoking and what a closing track! ‘Writing Out A List Of All The Names Of God’ is a highlight on ‘I Have A Physical Body That Can Be Harmed’, an absolutely ferocious track. The breakbeats are feral and live this will be a monster. At one point the track runs away with itself, the furious off-kilter drums are flippin insane, and when the edgy guitars arrive and build on the fury – all hell breaks loose. “Listen up this is important.” If you are left exhausted by just listening to a track you know the artist has created something pretty special.
Thank have produced an album which combines so many genres, and in doing so have captured their sound in a fashion which I suspect will blow the socks off the listener! This has to be played LOUD, and with plenty of room to throw yourself around. And yet there are serious messages and themes within these songs. Perhaps the most important take away is to be true to yourself, a cliche maybe but if being true to yourself means freaking out to Thank, alongside others doing exactly the same thing, then bring it on I say.
8/10
Words: Julia Mason
