Emerging from the post Covid ennui brimming with defiance, West Yorkshire DIY punk quintet Tiger Island feel like a band stuck in a malfunctioning time machine, constantly veering Goodnight Sweetheart style back and forth from the eighventies [sic].
Don’t let that put you off though, recent release ‘Look Around You’, the frenetic lead track from the band’s second EP, the 5-track ‘Looka Looka Looka’ delivers razor sharp hooks aplenty, complemented by a hilarious video clearly inspired by BBC’s cult spoof noughties documentary of the same name, instantly transporting the viewer back to a time when a nation of kids sat in front of their seemingly giant school telly, pretending to shoot the vanishing dots from the pre-show countdown clock.
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| Photo : Casey McAllister |
The EP itself, self-released and promoted, belies its shoestring budget origins, each number a bright shiny nugget of super-infectious power-pop; loud, brash, catchier than measles, and guaranteed to whack you straight between the eyes before scarpering from whence it came.
‘Bad Women’ with its piledriving start, delivers a furiously sassy celebration of female emancipation, whilst moody groove laden closer ‘Hunger Strike’ is arguably the pick of the five.
Penny’s sardonic vocal oozes fuck-you attitude throughout, propelled by twin guitars (Penny/Matt), a turbocharged rhythm section (another Matt and drummer Kev) with Kath’s fab new wave keys in all the right places, and so of their era they come with a black skinny leather tie thrown in for good measure.
Throwaway yet thrilling in equal measure, and expect their live shows to be a blast!
Words - Michael Price
Tiger Island official
Watch ‘Bad Women’