{"id":86958,"date":"2019-07-23T11:00:56","date_gmt":"2019-07-23T10:00:56","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/alreadyheard.com\/staging\/?p=86958"},"modified":"2023-02-24T14:45:57","modified_gmt":"2023-02-24T14:45:57","slug":"review-brutalligators-friends-i-wish-id-had-ep","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/alreadyheard.com\/staging\/review-brutalligators-friends-i-wish-id-had-ep\/","title":{"rendered":"Review: Brutalligators &#8211; Friends I Wish I&#8217;d Had EP"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><strong><img fetchpriority=\"high\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-medium wp-image-86959 alignleft\" src=\"https:\/\/alreadyheard.com\/staging\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/07\/Brutalligators_Friends-300x300.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"300\" height=\"300\" title=\"\" srcset=\"https:\/\/alreadyheard.com\/staging\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/07\/Brutalligators_Friends-300x300.jpg 300w, https:\/\/alreadyheard.com\/staging\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/07\/Brutalligators_Friends-100x100.jpg 100w, https:\/\/alreadyheard.com\/staging\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/07\/Brutalligators_Friends-768x768.jpg 768w, https:\/\/alreadyheard.com\/staging\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/07\/Brutalligators_Friends-1000x1000.jpg 1000w, https:\/\/alreadyheard.com\/staging\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/07\/Brutalligators_Friends-465x465.jpg 465w, https:\/\/alreadyheard.com\/staging\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/07\/Brutalligators_Friends-500x500.jpg 500w, https:\/\/alreadyheard.com\/staging\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/07\/Brutalligators_Friends-600x600.jpg 600w, https:\/\/alreadyheard.com\/staging\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/07\/Brutalligators_Friends.jpg 1400w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 300px) 100vw, 300px\" \/>Brutalligators<\/strong>&#8216; latest EP should make the punk scene sit up and take notice, as the South-East quartet combine indie-rock and post-hardcore to thrilling effect. From \u2018<em>Crows<\/em>\u2019 to \u2018<em>D Word<\/em>\u2019, they expand on their previous material with a collected release that turns contemporary indie-punk on its head.<\/p>\n<p>\u2018<em>Crows<\/em>\u2019 gets the EP off to a strong start. It\u2019s not quite post-punk, though there are clear similarities to The Blinders and Fontaines D.C. Full of vigour, the opening verse sets the tone for the rest of \u2018<em>Friends I Wish I\u2019d Had<\/em>\u2019, as <strong>Brutalligators<\/strong> turn the soft verse\/loud chorus format on its head with an impassioned, if slower, refrain. There\u2019s something Frank Turner-esque about it all, particularly in the vocals, although their sound as a whole lacks the folk-influence of his solo output.<\/p>\n<p>\u2018<em>Kill Your Heroes<\/em>\u2019 is a serious statement of classic hardcore intent, slap-bang in the middle of the release. Calling out abusers and musicians exploiting their fame and status, they aren\u2019t holding back. The fury in Luke Murphy-Wearmouth\u2019s words is palpable as he airs the band\u2019s rages.<\/p>\n<p><iframe title=\"Brutalligators - KYH (Official Music Video)\" width=\"800\" height=\"450\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/TcgzbMVJtsM?feature=oembed&#038;enablejsapi=1&#038;origin=https:\/\/alreadyheard.com\/staging\" frameborder=\"0\" allow=\"accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share\" allowfullscreen><\/iframe><\/p>\n<p>The versatility of the four-piece makes for an EP that is seldom dull. In these five tracks, there\u2019s a band who are slick, composed and organised. \u2018<em>Excited<\/em>\u2019 follows\u00a0and is heavier, displaying more of a post-hardcore influence. \u2018<em>Free<\/em>\u2019 is much the same, lacking the intensity of \u2018<em>Kill Your Heroes<\/em>\u2019 but displaying another level of adaptability. On balance, it\u2019s probably the weakest track on the EP \u2013 it feels less innovative than the rest.<\/p>\n<p>\u2018<em>Friends I Wish I\u2019d Had<\/em>\u2019 culminates with \u2018<em>D Word<\/em>\u2019, which along with \u2018<em>Crows<\/em>\u2019 bookend the EP in superb fashion. Intense yet melodic, Murphy-Wearmouth starts by declaring \u201c<em>Don\u2019t wanna kill myself today\/It\u2019s not a thought that really comes into my head\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n<p>Indie-punk hasn\u2019t been in short supply for the past couple of years, but with their stronger post-hardcore influences, <strong>Brutalligators<\/strong> aren\u2019t just here to make up the numbers. A strong effort from a band who only looks to be improving.<\/p>\n<p>4\/5<\/p>\n<p>\u2018<em>Friends I Wish I\u2019d Had<\/em>\u2019 EP by <strong>Brutalligators<\/strong> is out now on <strong>Real Ghost Records<\/strong>.<\/p>\n<p><strong>Brutalligators<\/strong> links: <a href=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/brutalligators\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Facebook<\/a> | <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/brutalligators?lang=en\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Twitter<\/a> | <a href=\"https:\/\/www.instagram.com\/brutalligators\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Instagram<\/a> | <a href=\"https:\/\/brutalligators.bandcamp.com\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Bandcamp<\/a><\/p>\n<p>Words by Adam England (<a href=\"http:\/\/twitter.com\/garageflowrr\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">@garageflowrr<\/a>)<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>&#8220;Brutalligators aren\u2019t just here to make up the numbers\u2026 a collected release that turns contemporary indie-punk on its head&#8221;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":39,"featured_media":86959,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[2269],"tags":[16012,5879,15701,17055,576],"class_list":["post-86958","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-ep-review","tag-adam-england","tag-album-reviews","tag-brutalligators","tag-friends-i-wish-id-had","tag-real-ghost-records"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v27.7 - 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