The duo, Lucinda Livingstone, on Vocals and Guitar, and Conor Dawson on Drums, use their music to break taboos and change attitudes towards mental health, spreading the message ‘’It’s okay to be sad’’. Along with this they aim to break the gender stereo types in music for good.
Since the release of their first single, Tonic Youth last year, the band have toured the UK, Europe, and America with many other bands from the likes of Muncie Girls to Woahnows.
Since then, the band have been working on a hotly anticipated EP, Sad. This EP is great, from the well written and strong lyrics, to the beats and guitar work, everything seems to fall into place and make for a great listening experience. The EP opens up with Hexes as the first track, this track seemingly focusing on anxiety and the pains and troubles of it, Hexes starts with a sombre intro before leading straight to excellently played guitar which is accompanied by a strong drum beat. The vocals kick in softly, the guitar and drums stay present providing an excellent backing. The lyrics are well written with clear meaning behind them and the vocals are delivered with clear emotion behind them, this band is truly not afraid to show you how they feel.
The next track, Stitches, keeps the same theme of being well written and powerfully delivered. The track opens with an almost post punk sound before the all to familiar guitar and drums kick back in with the vocals following closely behind. The chorus of Stitches is probably my favourite part of the track, the vocals soften nicely and the guitar work is truly well done.
Track three, I Hate Funerals, is probably one of my favourites from the EP. Sounding more melodic than the previous two tracks but keeping the excellent playing and well written vocals at the fore front. The emotion behind the delivery of the lyrics is well expressed during the chorus, and during the verses the song relaxes a good bit, it’s a good track to lay back to and just relax to.
Track Four, Ladyfuzz, is much more relaxed than the previous three, the vocals, guitar and drums being well played and clam during the verses but picking up for the chorus and giving a different sound than the rest of the album whilst still sounding like it fits with the other tracks. The song flows well with it’s self and the rest of the EP.
The fifth track, Black Coffee, is ultimately my favourite, sounding like a classic Post Punk track, being something I’d listen to on a regular basis. The vocals still have the same emotion behind them, the guitar and drums show a different but similar style of playing to the rest of the tracks which keeps it feeling like a part of the EP.
The bonus track on the EP, Tonic Youth, is the song that got Kamikaze Girls going and is a great inclusion to the EP, the track it’s self starts out nicely and the vocals are well delivered, you can see that even from the get go they knew what they wanted to do and just done it.
Over all, Sad, is a well put together and well played EP, with many elements to it, keeping you guessing as to what’s coming next. If you are interested, the band are playing multiple dates in the UK between the 24th of July and the 1st of October with more dates to announced. You’ll be able to pick up Sad from your favourite stores come the 2nd of September.
8/10