Introducing… Swerve

Here at Bearded we aim to shed light on acts who don't necessarily have giant labels or muscley budgets waving banners behind them. This Introducing series will focus on artists who we think are great, regardless of how much hype surrounds them or where their origin story lays.

Bio
Name: Swerve
Location: Birmingham, UK
Genre: B-Town/neo-grunge
Similar Artists: Swim Deep, Alice In Chains
Contact: Facebook, Twitter
Events: Currently writing a record, apparently.

Wielding a brash apathy and FIDLAR-esque passive-aggression (as well as a similar fondness for narcotics and intoxication), Birmingham natives Swerve let loose a cavalcade of gruelling axe sludge and gullet-scratched howls. The guitars plod with grunge-y lethargy at some points, at others the band channel classic rawk sounds, and at others the desert/stoner chug of six-stringer looms. What remains constant throughout their sound is a penchant for hazy, woozy, smoky odes to sex, drugs and, erm, “spiritual enlightenment.”



Tracks like 'Plain' feature canoodling riffs and bogged rhythms. There's a retro feel, as well as Indian folk chanting and the gritty cigarette-hoarseness of American heavy metal. People have noted comparisons to Alice In Chains and The Jesus and Mary Chain due to the visceral yelps and serrated hooks, but there's also a strident baggy-ness that's steeped in the region. There's '90s grooves and proto-rave beats; it would do Swerve a disservice to mention The Stone Roses, as they're not nearly pompous enough, but the dancey/spacey/rocky noises do bear a resemblance.



The five-piece band ooze slacker-chic; you can tell from the dishevelled drawl and slob aura that this band don't take themselves too seriously. In interviews, they claim that none other than Radio's most affable phallus, Chris Moyles, as their inspiration. It might be true, but given that Moyles probably wouldn't touch them with a 10ft bargepole, one could assume the quintet are just indulging in drollery.



Tracks 'Honeydripper' and 'Stray' are two of their most well known cuts. They may only have a handful of demos available on their Soundcloud page, but these two efforts have already incited a myriad of chinwagging; the buzz is starting to grow, and with Birmingham shaping up to be a dominant force in British music, Swerve are in the prime period to be unleashing their feral rock noises. Catch them before NME does.