Indie-punk outfit Beach Slang will be bringing their teenage angst-driven sound to the Depot this weekend on Saturday, March 11 in Salt Lake City as the opening act for Minus The Bear. The last two years for the Philadelphia natives have proven to be both prolific and fruitful. They look to keep this energy and success going with a series of touring dates across North America.
Their sophomore full-length “A Loud Bash of Teenage Feelings” released to wide critical and public appeal in late September of 2016. Volume and emotional content were focal points for the project, as one might expect from the title. When describing the intent behind this release on Polyvinyl Records, frontman James Alex said, “I don’t want to whisper things anymore. I want to yell them.”
And yell them he has as he draws from punk’s undeniable edge and pairs them with emotional, thought-provoking lyrics to create songs fraught with raucous energy and remarkable depth. This approach to punk has left many critics impressed. Speaking about the LP, Pitchfork said, “[T]here’s a poignancy to Beach Slang that courses through every second of A Loud Bash Of Teenage Feelings…”
Poignancy is often very important when delving into a genre which is now so heavily influenced by nostalgia and past greatness. Creating relevant and worthwhile punk in 2017 is not an easily attainable goal and requires a fresh take. It’s evident that Beach Slang has attained originality while also wearing their influences on their sleeves in an admirable and transparent manner.
Rather than take a breather after the success of their second full-length release, Beach Slang decided to once again pay homage to some of punk and indie’s most revered names with the second installment of their covers mixtape. “Here, I Made This For You (Beach Slang Mixtape Vol.2)” was released only 4 months after their sophomore effort. The mixtape covers tracks from the Adverts, The Candyskins, Tommy Keene, The Modern Lovers and most notably The Jesus & Mary Chain.
The Jesus & Mary Chain lay claim to helping build the sonic foundation of genres like alt rock and shoegaze, influencing greats like The Smashing Pumpkins and Sonic Youth in the process. Beach Slang executes those soft whisper-like vocals with admirable ability and gets those layered, melodic guitars just right on their cover of The Jesus & Mary Chain’s “Sometimes Always”.
Anyone who is interested in taking part in an emotional and nostalgic punk experience would be hard-pressed not to come out to the Depot on Saturday. Whether you’re seeking to feel them in full force or revisit them once again, it may be time to let those teenage emotions out.
Additionally, if you find that “A Bash Of Teenage Feelings” is quickly becoming a favorite of yours, go ahead and support the band by visiting their artist page over at Polyvinyl Records. The indie label is known for putting together some unique packaging for their cassettes and vinyl. The second volume of covers comes in a delightful homemade-like cassette while their sophomore LP comes in a heavy-weight, 180-gram blue/green starburst pressing.
@daanielsonn