An impressive debut release of dissonant, angular noise-pop nuggets!
Zero out of ten for that title, folks. But we forgive you, mainly because you’ve clearly focused on making this debut EP an absolute belter of an opening statement. What’s in a name, anyway?
Originally from Peterborough, and now divided between Bristol and London, Club Brat have been described as “a high-intensity punk/noise pop band defying traditional labels”, and we can’t say that we disagree. Sure, there are elements of great bands like Fugazi, Refused, At The Drive-In and Les Savy Fav, but Club Brat have taken those influences and fearlessly fed them through a meat grinder, resulting in four tracks that sound at once familiar and like no-one else around.
Opening track ‘25 Cameras’ surfs in on a siren-esque riff, before exploding into a melodic chorus, all topped off by frontman Ike McCormick’s enjoyably high-pitched vocals. Lead single ‘Goodbye Pop Culture’ follows, and it mixes a quiet-loud dynamic with some seriously spiky guitars and a refrain of “I don’t wanna have this conversations” that has long since taken up residence in our brains. They’d probably kill us for saying this, but it’s kind of…catchy?
‘In It For The Money (So-La-Ti-Do)’ continues along similar lines; there’s yet another beast of a riff, and this time Ike sounds like he almost roars himself hoarse during the first verse. Suffer for your art? Oh, and then some. Closer ‘Watch’ sees them throw everything they’ve got at the wall, with plenty of hardcore rage, and it all sticks. Remember how the all-conquering title track of Gallows’ ‘Orchestra Of Wolves’ debut signs off in a blaze of discordant guitar noise and howls of fury? Club Brat do something similar here, and it gives us the same shivers down our spines as Frank Carter’s mob did all those years ago.
‘4 Songs’ is not a comfortable or relaxing listen, and we’re pretty sure the band didn’t intend for it to be the soundtrack to a leisurely summer Sunday afternoon drive. For that, we salute them, and we can’t wait to see them live; check out the links below for upcoming dates.
‘4 Songs’ is released on September 12th via Venn Records.
- 25 Cameras
- Goodbye Pop Culture
- In It For The Money (So-La-Ti-Do)
- Watch
Follow Club Brat on Their Socials:
Need more Punk In Your Life?
Live review: WitchDoktors, Kingston Fighting Cocks, 5th Sep 2025
Of all the many great punk and rock n’ roll bands that Witchdoktors recall, Rocket From The Crypt are forefront in our minds tonight; not
Shake Some Acton gig #111, London Hope & Anchor, 2nd Sep 2025
Not only do the French quartet turn in a belter of an 18-song set, sounding like a bunch of garage-punks who’ve broken into Devo’s practice
Book review: ‘An Anarchy Of Demons’ By Charlie Harper
Punk legend Charlie Harper recounts many escapades and amusing moments from throughout his long life in his autobiography ‘An Anarchy Of Demons’. It will appeal
Live Review: Die Toten Hosen – Vega, Copenhagen, Denmark 29th August 2025
When German punks Die Toten Hosen (The Dead Trousers) returned to Copenhagen for the first time in about 30 years, tickets for the +1500 capacity
Album review: Launch Control release ‘The Omnipotent Wage’
Berkshire’s best kept Punk Rock secret tell us how fucked the world is! Reading-based band Launch Control are socio-political punks, who have been together since
Shake Some Acton gig #110, London Hope & Anchor, 30th August 2025
Barcelona quintet Radioactivas come across as much a gang as a band, and they’re a gang that we wanna join. Vocalist Eri hands out some
I spend my days teaching English to foreign students, and my evenings attending as many gigs as possible. Raised mainly on a diet of 90s third-wave punk, my tastes have grown to include just about anything from trad ska to thrash metal. The Ramones are my musical gods.
Did you know that we are 100% DIY? We run our own game. No one dictates to us, and no one drives what we can or cannot put on our pages – and this is how we plan to continue!
