Recorded in the raw, blessed with a meaty sound not dissimilar to Metallica’s original Garage Days… EP and in thrall to Punk, Disgraceland’s imaginatively-titled EP1 is non-nonsense rock ‘n’ roll for those who steadfastly refuse to go quietly into that good night. A project formed by guitarist Ollie Stygall and drummer Foz (of former SonicAbuse favourites Grifter), alongside strutting bass-monster Chris Glew, Disgraceland’s debut EP may not appear big or clever, but it sure is a hell of a lot of fun.
From the moment that Foz’s count in leads into a churning riff that sounds like the blues in a cement mixer, you deserve it taps into that same vein of melodic chaos that has driven the mighty Wildhearts for so many years. A stripped-back vocal & drums verse gives way to a chorus that is presumably already being chanted at the band’s live engagements up and down the country, whilst the solo sounds like a jet engine straining to lift an over-loaded plane into the air… in short, it’s pretty damn cool and it introduces Disgraceland in a suitably explosive fashion. I gots it all (grammatical headache aside) has a central riff that recalls the surf-rock LPs of Dick Dale, amped up and played at ear-splitting volumes. It gets the toes tapping, the neck snapping, and if you don’t have a huge, shit-eating grin on your face by the end, then you’re not playing it loud enough. Another menacing take on the blues, best little doggy shouldn’t stick in the head, but it does like the sneaky little bastard that it is, before just some fucking words taps into a sense of post-punk irony with a spoken word rant pitched over woozy, late-night ambience. Lulled into a false sense of security, no matter how much you prepare yourself, the explosive non-chorus still comes as a shock and the track may just be the most memorable on the EP thanks to its (pointedly stated) refusal to meet any standard song-writing formula. Although just some fucking words would make a fine EP closer, business is resumed on the Stray-Cats-vs-Iggy 100% cunt for one last effusive blast of heady punk ‘n’ roll that takes a moment to throw in some fizzing Sonic Youth-isms into the mix, just as you think you’ve got it all figured out.
As bad tempered as a bull with its knackers caught on a barbed wire fence and imbued with enough hooks to fish Loch Ness empty, EP1 is a loud, abrasive and obnoxious blast that somehow pulls off the trick of being incredibly memorable despite its antagonistic stance. It’s easy to imagine these leather-clad loons supporting the likes of the Wildhearts and, with a slot at Bloodstock already on the cards, it’s clear that they’re heading in the right direction. Not big yet and cleverer than it lets on, EP1 is a glorious debut. 8.5
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