By Jonny Bakes
When it comes to picking up albums to review, I love to push myself outside my comfort zone to see what else is out there. Sometimes it can be the smallest thing that draws me to an album, and in this case it’s the hometown of this band that caught my attention. Having spent a lot of childhood and teenage years in and around Salisbury (famous, of course for its Cathedral spire) I was intrigued to see what music this tiny city generates these days. This is how I found myself in possession of CARSICK’s ‘Tough Luck’.
Carsick are a band that is certainly on the rise, getting attention from both Radio 1 and Radio 6 and making an appearance at 2024’s Reading Festival, thanks to their high energy approach to indie-punk. Mixing elements of indie, punk, hip hop and electronica with social commentary from the perspective of their own generation, there’s a lot to get excited about.
‘Tough Luck’ is a fine example of this, and on my first listen through I was taken back to hearing Jamie T’s ‘Sticks ‘N’ Stones’ which was inescapable during my late teens – It seems to me that ‘Tough Luck’ could have the same impact to a whole new generation. It captures the essence of the party lifestyle in a small town, where everyone knows everyone and often you have to make your own entertainment when the limited selection of bars fails to excite.
Possibly my favourite song on this album is closing track ‘Thatchers Gold’ partially because it directly references one of my go to drinks, but also because the ballad gives way to one hell of a catchy chorus. In fact, I reckon the phrase “Henry Weston supernova” that crops up in the chorus could describe many of my own Friday nights. ‘Thatchers Gold’ is one of those songs that just gets under your skin, in fact it’s been bouncing round my head ever since my first play through of this album. I can easily see how this would get a crowd riled up with its infectious rhythm and good vibes.
In contrast with this, the album opener ‘Violence’ has a real note of aggression delivered in the fast rhymes backed by a pulsing beat. This track leans more into the rap/hip-hop influences and brings in some electronica/DnB for good measure to give something that packs a serious punch – much like the Saturday night scuffles it depicts. It opens with a guitar riff that sounds almost like an old police siren which sets the scene for what’s to come…
So all in all, ‘Tough Luck’ is something that is outside of my usual sphere of influence, however it has managed to grab my attention by transporting me to cider fueled nights on my home turf. The resemblance to Jamie T is no accident, of course, and is possibly what got me hooked in the first place (‘Sticks ‘N’ Stones’ has held a long standing spot in my regular plays!). The blend of indie vibes with the harsher elements of hip-hop and punk delivers something that is both catchy and hard hitting.
Yet somehow CARSICK managed to produce something that you could both dance and mosh to – something for everyone! It’s certainly been a good find for me, and I might just bag myself a CARSICK football shirt off their website to celebrate…
- ‘Tough Luck‘ is out now.