Description
The first Sub Pop album by the wonderful Welsh trio The Bug Club is filled with thrillingly witty and energetic catchy punk.
The Bug Club are favorites of influential radio station KEXP and BBC DJ Marc Riley.
Produced and mixed by Thomas Rees
The way youre saying it, prolific isnt the right word for The Bug Club. Youve got to say it with the trademark Welsh lilt and pay due homage to this inimitable bands origins in the renowned hit factory of Caldicot, South Wales. Do that, and youre about right with how to summarize a group whove released ten singles, two albums, two EPs, three things nobody knew how to describe, and an album under a different bands name, all since 2021, and while playing 200+ gigs a year. Initially comprising the songwriting core of Sam Willmett (vocals/guitar) and Tilly Harris (vocals/bass) with Dan Matthew (drums), The Bug Club started plying their trade in 2016. They were signed by UK label Bingo Records in Autumn of 2020. BBC 6 Musics Marc Riley was an early champion, hammering the single, booking the band in for a session as soon as it was allowed, and rightfully praising songwriters capable of singing the whole alphabet in a two-minute song and making it work. Third LP On The Intricate Inner Workings Of The System their first for Sub Pop sees the band serve up a beefy slab of their speciality Modern-Lovers-meets-Nuggets garage rock. Theres B-52s call-and-response fun mixed with AC/DC power chord grunt. Leaning towards fast-paced punk, opening double salvo War Movies and Quality Pints sets out the stall: duel vocal piss-taking, surreal takes on everyday topics that go full circle and become profound, riffs all day long and then all the next day too. Quality Pints deals with the pressing concerns of any conscientious touring outfit, taking to heart the rule of the three Rs as penned by renowned fellow pints fan Mark E. Smith of The Fall. Repetition, repetition, repetition. If its that important, which it is, its worth saying again. War Movies dresses distorted chugging with a comprehensive best of list for the genre, with Sam Willmett offering a solo casually chucked out in a way that will make your dad promptly give up any resurgent guitar playing ambitions. And A Bit Like James Bond tackles the UKs sleaziest undercover export at the same time as the embarrassing ego problem that besets much of its population but its only heavy(ish) in the fun, loads-of-riffs sense. So, thats what theyve been finishing up during their massive month-long break from gigs. In a bid to avoid being branded layabouts, The Bug Club will support their upcoming Sub Pop release with a springtime tour of the UK and Europe beginning May 10, before heading out to the US in September.
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