Exclusive:  Dancehall Debut Album Track By Track

Building on a buzz created by a clutch of outstanding singles, London garage/alt. rock trio Dancehall have just issued excellent debut LP The Band.

Comprising of lead singer and bassist Timothy V formerly of grunge Kill Kenada, guitarist Craig Sharp and sticksman David Keeler, the album builds on the promise exuded by their earlier singles and incendiary live shows, which recently included support slots with alt. rock veterans And You Will Know Us By the Trail of Dead. Thirty minutes worth of loud/quiet/very loud dynamism and skewed melodicism, lyrically The Band explores Dancehall’s DIY ethos, politics slacker disenfranchisement.

Bringing together the DIY sensibility of punk legends Fugazi, the NYC noise rock doyens Sonic Youth with the rhythmic undertow of LCD Soundsystem, the band have the songwriting smarts of US alt. pop pioneers B-52s and late 1990s Blur.

Issued through their own label Vibe/Antivibe, the trio celebrate the album’s release with an free instore show Rough Trade East tomorrow.

Here the trio guide us through the inspirations behind the ten tracks that make up The Band:



KO

Dedicated to an apathetic ex colleague of Tim’s who would complain about everything but happily do fuck all to sort it out... We all know one, right?

Vs and Gs

One of the seminal tracks created in Craig’s cosy loft room in east London, the track was born out of boredom of the grind, Polish lager and maize based snacks.

Diggging

Originally called Digging For Gold which connected more with the reality of being endlessly broke, then the lyrics grew exploring the idea that we are all digging for something, but usually just end up finding dirt.

Droner

An anti-love song highlighting the fears, paranoia, control, confusions and torture of being in love. Proper emo style.

Burn

A fantastic mistake experiment with one of Craig’s new pedals created the main riff for the song, then add a strong beat, melodic bass and lyrics about burning down Trump Towers... and there you have it, recipe for success.

Virgin

The video for this song was entirely shot in local east London corner shops (except the maize based products dream sequence, but they were all bought in said shops) and entirely filmed and edited DIY by the band too.

OK

Originally called It’s Not OK, the song explores lyrically the ‘wannabe’ that lurks inside all of us and the fear of “selling out” socially to gain power and approval.

96

One of the heavier songs that was born from overloading new distortion pedals by Craig and David’s need to pound the shit outta it... Large! At least once in the live set.

Salt

A little sweet song about being addicted to something that’s bad for you, we wanted to have a ballad but not in usual style, enter Craig’s fuzzy squirrel for the massive grinding verse Gs.

Vitamins

Plain and simple immediate punk rock tube that uses quiet and controlled Vs loud and angry, a direct jab at being a slave to your job, your bills, your social media and your consumerism. Tim daydreamed about Lou Reed telling him to “stand up straight, shoulders back and fight for what you love” while recording vocals for this track. RIP Lou.

The Band is out now through Vibe/Antivibe

Dancehall play at Rough Trade East Wednesday 20th June, Free Entry. Details