Dearthworms announce debut album, Sapsucker, out 26th July on Redundant Span Records
Dearthworms
Announce debut album, Sapsucker,
due 26th July on Redundant Span Records
Share "Strike Low" Single - Listen here
Sheffield five-piece Dearthworms announce their debut album, Sapsucker, due 26th July on the city’s Redundant Span Records. Sapsucker is a ferocious yet considered blend of jagged noise, wonk-rock, and a touch of experimental post-punk; an altogether different beast from band members' past and current projects inc. Blood Sport, Amorous Dialogues, Knorke and Stray Bullet.
The album will be released on vinyl and digital download. Preorder here.
Leading the charge is new single “Strike Low”, a song that is written from the perspective of a male praying mantis before it shifts into human narration. The first half of the song has an almost bordering on country shuffle to it – although more in the way bands like Meat Puppets or Butthole Surfers may utilise that genre – before it bursts into life with incredibly catchy riffs, as vocalists Nick Potter and Edith Rothwell engage in some equally infectious call and response vocals.
Dearthworms - Strike Low
https://youtu.be/ASQlN7gpgDM
Listen to "Strike Low" on streaming services: https://dearthworms.ffm.to/strikelow
Album preorder: https://dearthworms.ffm.to/sapsucker
Filmed in Gleadless Valley, Sheffield and on their recent tour with Ye Woodbeast and taxidermy puppet company Pish and Chips, Dearthworms say of the video: “We felt like the best way to present our horniest song was with chaotic live footage and abstract violence. We cannot confirm who or what was under the spade.”
Dearthworms Live Dates:
11th May – Big Hands, Manchester w/ Dreamwave
19th May - Hatch, Sheffield
19th July - Delicious Clam, Sheffield (Album Release Show)
26th July - Shakespeare's, Sheffield
27th July - Jabberwocky, Sheffield
More about Dearthworms...
“The record is about weird people and weird experiences,” says Nick Potter. “I've got a really vivid imagination and I like getting in the head of strange characters.”
And so sets the scene for the bizarre and wonderful world of Dearthworms. Made up of Nick, Finn, Andy Sissons, Andy Ball and Edith Rothwell, the band offer up a ferocious yet considered blend of jagged noise, wonk-rock, oddball pop, and a touch of experimental post-punk. Further infused with Nick’s surreal, eerie and vivid lyrics, the band have created something genuinely unique on their debut album.
Stepping into Sapsucker is to dive head first into a parallel universe populated by snivelling, pathetic men, tales of eroticism, ruminations on death, and even a giant worm rooted in North-East folklore.
However, in much the same way someone like David Lynch can imagine up wild, arresting, and otherworldly universes plucked from the backdrop of American suburbia, the basis for Dearthworms’ exploration of the surreal often lies in the humdrum cycle of everyday life. “There’s a mundanity and normality to what we do in a way,” explains Nick. “But within that normality we tap into a kind of nauseating weirdness.”
Despite all this talk of peculiarity, there is also an alluring accessibility to the band. Dearthworms are able to merge infectious riffs, subtle melodies and discordant rhythms along with their more leftfield leanings. “We like things that are fussy, weird and intricate,” says guitarist Finn. “We love sneaking in a bit of weird dissonance or odd time signatures but it's making sure that stuff is not just a gimmick. It shouldn’t feel forced. We don't want people to think, oh, that's a deliberately wonky song. It should feel natural but it's just off-centre enough that it pulls you in a different way.” Nick echoes this sentiment: “We like stuff that hits hard but is almost slightly slurring.”
The production, by Lyndon Hobson, is also a notable contribution to the end output of the record. While it succeeds in capturing the bite, snarl and ferocity of an album that is unquestionably complex and gritty, it also allows space and breathing room, with textures and atmospheres allowed to gently float around. The production ultimately captures the tone of the album itself, which is one equally rooted in anxious introspection as much as it is noisy and cathartic outpourings. All of which results in a debut album that is genuinely distinct and singular, filled with varying twists and turns and off-kilter movements.
The band, who all have a longstanding history of being in various other bands in Sheffield, are a by-product of the DIY space Hatch; a place that has existed as a creative incubator and experimental breeding ground for the band since forming. “It’s allowed us to go at our own pace,” says guitarist Andy Ball. “We are quite relaxed and slow with what we do.” This approach also fits into another crucial ethos of the band too; one that stands as a refreshing antidote to so many bands whose career ambitions often take primary focus over their creative ones. “We are proudly a hobby band,” says Nick. “That's a big thing. We're doing this for fun. There's not a careerist mentality. A lot of this is therapy for us. It’s a chance for us to sit in pubs, play gigs, berate people, and get our weird sad thoughts out of our heads and into music.”
Preorder Sapsucker
https://dearthworms.ffm.to/sapsucker
Tracklisting:
1. Waste of Skin
2. Strike Low
3. Blessed Child
4. The Worm Swallows The Dirt
5. Rorthide
6. Boys In The Wood
7. Landsknecht's Message
8. No Surprises
9. Warlock of Change
Dearthworms are:
Andy Sissons - Drums
Andy Ball - Guitar, Vocals
Edith Rothwell - Bass, Vocals
Finn - Guitar
Nick Potter - Vocals, Keyboards
CONNECT:
Dearthworms Instagram
https://redundantspan.bandcamp.com
