Petrol Girls vocalist Ren Aldridge brings you the best in new music, including HAWXX, Dirty Talons and Okay, Bye…
It’s always tricky recommending new music to people – I’m not even sure how to categorise a ‘new’ band – but I’m hopeful that I’ve got some great recommendations for you here. I’ve literally just run home from the outdoor swimming pool here in Graz – it’s 32 degrees at the moment – so I’m feeling good! Once I’ve done this, I might just crawl back to the swimming pool because it’s honestly saving my life this summer – it’s so hot! Enjoy the new music…
“They've just put out an EP called You're Only As Loud As You Shout Right Now, and I found out about them through that record’s lead track, Death Of Silence. They’re a sick band who make super powerful metal music. Death Of Silence is a song I really like because it was inspired by MeToo – it’s kind of an attack on silencing and shame, and it’s done in solidarity with anyone that's speaking out about whatever oppression they face. HAWXX are a super strong, really cool band.”
“This band is awesome! I fucking love Press Club – I’m obsessed. I listen to their album Wasted Energy relentlessly. We got to see them just the other week at a festival we were both playing in Leipzig, which was amazing because I’d been desperate to see them for years. I got to hang out with Nat [Foster, vocals] for a bit, and we had such a good chat about all the shit jobs we’ve had to work to make music possible. We also both design our own merch, so we had a nice chat about that, too. She’s a phenomenal performer and frontperson – I picked up some new moves from watching her!”
“I know Nervus aren’t super-new, but they just released an album called The Evil One that really deserves to get some attention. We’ve known Em [Foster, vocals/guitar] and Lucinda [Livingstone, bass] for a really long time, and what I love about them is that their politics are so radical, but they make it so much fucking fun. They’re a joy to watch live, and a super funny band. The Evil One is an amazing record – there’s real power to music that can be so radical, yet catchy too.”
“This band is from Exeter, and they just put out a new song called Wasted. We actually met them when we were making our new album Baby, because they came to look around the studio while we were recording there. We found them to be lovely people, and we’ve kept in touch online since. They’re quite a grungy band, and the vocals are great – they remind me of Lande [Hekt] from Muncie Girls. Okay, Bye have a very distinctive quality to their music.”
“This is another band I’m obsessed with, although I’m a little biased because our drummer Zock [Astpai] is their guitarist and his partner, Jess, is fronting them. She’s our tour manager a lot of the time, and I think it’s so fucking cool that she’s doing this; she’s older than me, but this is her first-ever band and she’s gone proper mad for it. The music is like Sheer Mag meets AC/DC! It’s such a joy, so fun and over the top – there’s three guitars in there and some straight-up silly solos, while Jess’ voice is really high and powerful. I had to get Dirty Talons in here as one of my picks!”
Petrol Girls’ album Baby is out now via Hassle
