Crushed Beaks – ‘Tropes’
We’ve been waiting years for a release longer than six minutes from this south London duo, but Crushed Beaks are proving that it was well worth the wait. Carrying the torch for Britain in the face of the American invasion of rock ‘n’ roll, Tropes is an EP well worth its weight in gold.
Full of crushing melody and heartfelt sentiment whilst retaining the simplistic fuzz of a confused generation, this EP is a premise of a movement. ‘Feelers’, the first track of the EP, is cool and calm in its delivery as it swaggers through your eardrums and deposits south London grit where east London glamour cowers.
‘Tropes’ is the stand-out track of the record. Its soft five-second intro is soon replaced by punk guitars and equally authentic vocals that sound like a man on the edge of a drinking pit, spitting vodka and bile as it tells us the story of an undependable man. You know you have a great track when the vocals are in equal parts indistinguishable and intelligent.
The next track, ‘Lies’, takes a more sullen and sultry stance on the shoegaze indie that is currently gripping the midlands. Crushed Beaks keep an edge to this otherwise marshmallow genre whilst keeping its pop sensibilities. Reflecting the razor blade rather than the ketamine it’s used to cut at the end of the night.
‘Day Residue’ is the curtain call on this first knock on the door from Matthew Poile and Alex Morris. With its dip dye use of synth and trademark slurring vocals that sound somewhat like The Rifles, ‘Day Residue’ is a short-lived daydream full of fuzzy guitars and Clearasil lyrics.
Crushed Beaks may be taking their sweet time with their releases, but in an age when we are to believe that to be successful, a band must record every single fucking thought that pops into their skull. Crushed Beaks are proving otherwise.
Stream in full below.
Never Miss A Beat
The Far Out New Music Newsletter
All the latest New Music from the independent voice of culture.
Straight to your inbox.