Self described as deadly serious and lost in whimsy at the same time, 9 o’clock Nasty are every bit all over the place and eccentric as that description would suggest. The Leicester based rock outfit are a smorgasbord of subgenres ranging from abrasive garage rock to lo-fi synth indie rock. They are far away from the mainstream in every way conceivable, bringing to the fore a style of avant-garde garage rock that you’ve probably never experienced before.
Distorted guitar, distorted and meshed vocal harmonies, all serve as superficial covers to a synth pop melody embedded within. At times 9 o’clock Nasty seem to be flirting with something truly original, pausing on the edge of madness, teasing us with a vision of otherworldly beatpop. On the album’s first piece, Monstruosa, there’s an almost battle between two vocal styles as the group yell the song’s title in the chorus. One seems mellow, almost bringing an indie pop vibe to it. The other is in your face, aggressive and rash in its delivery. The bands ability to combine the two styles, mix them into a melody that works ontop of each other with cohesion makes 9 o’clock Nasty who they are. That beating sense of urgency as they belt ‘Monstruosa, TAKE ME HOME’ will stay in your head long after the song’s closure.
It’s a two-minute rock-melodrama that is unimaginably dark, welcoming death and channelling the lightest moments of the Pixies into the awkward silences of a record by The Fall. On ‘Walkman Walk’, a punchy and groovy bassline serves as the centrepiece. The vocals here are almost backgrounded, letting the bass take the spotlight. ‘Out on the precipice, life goes on’. It’s got a journeyman energy to it, almost like a track you’d play to persevere and juts carry on through a tough time. ‘Big Fish’ is a little bit more like a normal indie rock tune, but the aggressive rhythms persist on the vocals.
On the eve of two festival performances, and the full release of all three songs alongside videos, 9 o’clock Nasty is on the rise and how. Catch the group’s unique style of art-garage rock out tomorrow!
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