Casual Drag showcase their blistering and emphatically raw garage punk sound on their debut EP Revolution Will Eat Itself
Thank to their ferocious, raw-edged, riff-laden sound, Scottish garage punk trio Casual Drag have done a great job of establishing their raucous appeal over the last few years, putting together a collection of tracks that showcase their gritty charm and swaggering, DIY energy. These releases have culminated with the release of their brand new debut EP Revolution Will Eat Itself, a body of work that encapsulates the spirit and ethos of the emerging outfit.
The EP opens with ‘Something Good’, an energetic and memorable track that sets us off on the right foot immediately. There is a palpable sense of energy and drive that writhes within everything that Casual Drag release, like the tracks are made to be heard live in intimate, sweaty venues, and this track and its rousing, singalong chorus does a great job of evoking that feeling even listening from your home.
‘Bleach Head’ opens with a memorable, almost Slaves-like riff that leads us into another abrasively raw and engaging track. The band’s marriage of dissonant, chaotic sounds and moments of genuine catchiness and guile make for a really interesting juxtaposition, and the track’s groove-laden riff might just stick with you for long after your listen.
The trio, at least initially, take on a more measured approach for lead single ‘I Like It’, building in a more gradual way before crashing into another effortlessly intoxicating chorus that feels as energetic as it does catchy, daring you to get up and move as it explodes into even more riff-laden heaven. As bands like Royal Blood and Cleopatrick have shown, great garage rock can often live and die on its explosiveness and sheer size and memorability of its riffs and crashing drums, and this is something that Casual Drag use to devastating effect throughout the EP.
The swaggering ‘Brain Rot’ is next, a track filled full of personality and bile-filled anger. There is a real edge to this track and the often frantic nature of the vocals that seem to grow more frustrated and pissed off as it progresses, the track builds in intensity and drive and all three members of the band match each other perfectly as it rallies up to an emphatic climax.
The EP closes with ‘Out of Sight’, another track that takes on the approach of anchoring itself around a catchy riff and building from a more measured starting point. There is a palpable tension on the track as you can feel that it is building and building and leading us into a foreboding sense of chaos until eventually, a wonderful instrumental break closes out the track where all of the frustration and discontent from the EP seems to be released in a cathartic and liberating fashion, signing off Revolution Will Eat Itself in an emphatic manner, and one that such a relentless and explosive release deserves.
The EP is one that pretty much sums up Casual Drag as a band, from the variety and impact of the riffs, to the crashing drums, to the unpredictable manner in which the tracks can transform into a seismic wall of sound. The track’s are packed full of heart and rawness, and feel like a genuine breath of fresh air in a music scene that can often feel like it is pushing in the opposite way. Just one listen to the EP gives you a rough idea of what it would be like to experience the band’s live show, and we’re willing to bet that the chaos is only amplified further in such a setting.
