AMYL & THE SNIFFERS Vinyl & CDs

Review: In a time where the gruff-throated anti-Tory messaging of Idles, the reflective post-drugged out swagger of Viagra Boys and the pub-feed championing of The Chats remind us that punk can still be a vital voice of the people, both big and small, Amyl & The Sniffers have all but quietly been amassing the type of hype and buzz to go toe-to-toe with the lot. Capitalising on the momentum of 2021's exceptional Comfort To Me with last year's 7" "fuck you" to old, gatekeeping curmudgeons on 'U Should Not Be Doing That', the band return to producer Nick Launay (Nick Cave & The Bad Seeds, Yeah Yeah Yeahs) for their severely anticipated third LP Cartton Darkness. Recorded at the Foo Fighters' 606 Studios in Los Angeles, the one and only real-life Amyl (Ms. Amy Taylor) succinctly describes the message as - "driving headfirst into the unknown, into this looming sketch of the future that feels terrible but doesn't even exist yet. A childlike darkness. I don't want to meet the devil half-way and mourn what we have right now. The future is cartoon, the prescription is dark, but it's novelty. It's just a joke. It's fun."

Review: You don't get to call your band Amyl & The Sniffers if the music is anything short of corrosive, in the best possible way. Launching at a serious pace from the off, this is punk at its modern best - a juggernaut of sweat, swearing and uncompromising songwriting that's only rival for your attention comes in the form of riffs and gritty chord instrumentation.

But the Melbourne, Australia band's second LP is far from a simple rehash of the first, which we could have also described in similar terms to those you just read above. This time round things feel more thoughtful, perhaps even patient in certain moments. Of course they still wear 'weirdos' on their sleeves, tongues often firmly placed in cheeks. But there's a depth here to the songwriting, a retro and introspective feeling that reveals far more than the debut album let us hear.

Review: Never too shy for irony, Australian rock band from Melbourne, Amyl and The Sniffers, are keeping the mullet cuts and beer spitting sound of the southern land's sound well alive. It's Rough Trade that have taken up Amyl and The Sniffers for their debut album recorded in Sheffield with Ross Orton towards the end of 2018. Six months on and the four piece are rattling the walls more than ever with a raucous ballyhoo of garage-punk that sees the band's ferocious Pouges-y mix of Irish drunkenness hit the wall with the Californian sounds of Pennywise and Australia's own Frenzal Rhomb. With thrashings of guitars, unique and raw Australianisms, and sweaty, smashing drums: Amyl and The Sniffers are popping off.