We’ve heard nothing but good things about the new EP from Brighton punks Gnarwolves, but was there any truth behind all the gossip? We gave it a bash to find out what’s so special about Adolescence.
The current alternative scene is practically crawling with a whole bunch of pop punk rock bands giving it the big one, so much so you could argue that the whole punk idea behind the music has become nothing more than an edgy label. Few bands out there capture the essence of what it means to be a punk rock band, but thankfully Gnarwolves nail it 100%. Take this EP. It’s tiny. There’s only four tracks. But everything about it from the artwork to the attitude fuelled vocals takes us back to a simpler time. A time of skateboards and tatty jeans, everyone loves nostalgia. Especially when you look back and miss the good old days when you just didn’t give a fuck.
Gnarwolves have birthed some raw punk anthems with this release. Reintroduced a delightful bit of grunge into a genre that’s becoming a little to polished for our liking. Take ‘Bad Dreams’ for example, there’s elements of hardcore and doom in there. Thick sludgey riffs and diminished vocal go together like pie and mash. We all know that it works, so why don’t we see more of it? ‘The Waiting Line’ and ‘Daydreamer’ are both fast hectic tracks again packed full of that rebellious attitude that we just love to hear. Whereas ‘Blondie’ takes a more acoustic route, it’s very minimalist and very effective. It’s amazing how well this record is paced over just four tracks.
In short then, yes. The rumours are true. Gnarwolves have produced an absolute gem with Adolescence. We just wish there was more of it to relish in. No doubt it won’t be long till the lads hit us up with something new, hurry boys we’re waiting.
