Composed of 10 carbonated shots of snappy ruminations on how work robs us of the best years of our lives and how our youth is merely being rented by joyless capitalists, Cans is quite essentially the life-affirming joy of those shout-along live shows captured and bottled into one handy record. Fully optimised for an age where every single second of spare time must be savoured lest one lose their mind whilst tapping into the unchained and unfiltered DIY punk stylings of the likes of Buds., Brutalligators and I Feel Fine, with this record Regal Cheer have truly captured what it’s like having to survive in a system where work overrides all. Quite frankly, it’s true breath of fresh air, one born from frustration and ennui, yet expressed with joy and explosive energy.
With the record out today via Beth Shalom Records, we got in touch with Max Cleworth (Guitar, Vocals) and Harry Menear (Drums, Vocals) to break down Cans, track by track.
Related: Regal Cheer – Cans | Album Review
Max: “PPL stands for Play Post Lobotomy, a reference to the Northampton band Broadbay and their song ‘Post Lobotomy’. They stopped playing that song far too early. The title has no real reference to the subject matter, it’s about when you’re feeling anxious about something and not really doing anything to tackle it head on and solve the problem. This was the first song we wrote after writing and recording Side Hustle and Overtime. The guys in Broadbay are doing Big Whup and Sunny Gym now, talented people and definitely worth checking out.”
Max: “You might pick up on a theme here, yet another one on being pretty self critical about not speaking up on things that are directly impacting you and feeling like a little wimp about it. It’s well easy to be a pushover when you’d rather no confrontation at all. I lived in a house where it was loud and scum all the time but kept quiet to avoid seeming like a prick, I would have rather the carpet smelt like ciggies and kissed goodbye to my holding deposit. I had this riff for fucking ages, felt well nice to finally get to use it. We got some friends from I Feel Fine, Chalk Hands, Public Body, Big Slammu and Really Big Really Clever in on the gangs too.”
Harry: “This was also the first time we relinquished video making duties to someone else. Our good mate Pat who puts on Washed Out Festival offered to do the video after we saw him make this cool effect with some old footage of ours. I think it came out amazing, he showed me the process and it looked confusing and time consuming so shoutout to him. I think the footage used in the video is from I Feel Fine’s album release show at the Bees Mouth. There’s a fact you don’t care about, you’re welcome.”
Max: “We were going to call this song “[redacted] is a wanker” but thought ‘Ante’ was a bit more family friendly. We found ourselves in a position early on in the band where we felt pretty looked down on and ‘surplus to requirements’, we decided that rather than get down about it we would accept that that one person is a maggot and we’re going to make our own fun. A bit of a poppy one I guess, the only one where we had a cleanish bass tone. I really like what Harry did on the second verse with the drums too, gave it a proper lovely bounce.
Harry: “We filmed the video for this in our flat Max and I shared together after I broke up with my girlfriend. Within two weeks of moving in my bedroom roof started leaking. The pièce de résistance of that flat was the PVC pipe connecting the kitchen taps so the water would drain into the sink and not all over the counter. That’s what £450 a month gets you in Brighton folks. Jared from Really Big Really Clever was behind the camera for this one. Thought it came out great and was a good excuse to buy a drum kit I’ll barely ever use.
The first record from the indie-punk trendsetters in the best part of an entire decade, Uncertain Joys doesn’t just come following a lengthy hiatus for the band, but a life changing and transformational journey for frontman Billy Lunn. After the band entered a state of dormancy following their 2011 record Money and Celebrity, Lunn found himself studying English at Cambridge and embracing his subdued sexuality. Fantastic endeavours yes, yet the years between then and now also saw him battling borderline personality disorder, addiction and an attempt to end his life. The road has been one of both triumph and tragedy for the frontman, but one that has concluded with Lunn being both the best version of himself and the most passionate, substantial and charismatic record from The Subways thus far.
With Uncertain Joys out now via Alcopop! Records, We sat down with Billy Lunn to deep dive into creative classism (looking at you, nepo babies), the death of grassroots venues and the new record.
“It’s still quite odd for us being on stage because it was such an elongated period over the pandemic of not playing and getting used to the fact that we’re not going to be in social spaces, even just as music appreciators. I think I went a little bit crazy, to be honest. It’s not just the fact that I love playing music, it’s that I think my soul really needs to be on stage. That space where there’s this contract where everyone walks through the door, and they all understand that they’re gonna go nuts; that they’re going to kind of shrug off the daily problems and issues, and they’re just going to enjoy the music. So ever since those periods, I think getting on stage has been a really special thing for me, but particularly so having released this album, which has been in our locker for such a long time now.”
“I thought only really in a subliminal sense where having read these books, read this poetry and acquired some techniques may have affected my lyric writing, but my mum listened to the album for the first time properly last night and sent me a WhatsApp message just like “I can’t believe your lyrics on this new album. They’re fabulous!” I was just like “aw, thanks, mum!”, but I don’t know how much stock I can put in that, because it’s still my mum and she’s probably gonna think everything I do is fabulous.”
“I look at some of the subject matter and I think I probably would never have broached those sorts of subjects were it not for stepping back from the whirlwind of music and live touring for three years and actually just being a music appreciator again. Getting lost in these huge tomes of reading the poems of Ben Johnson, Elizabeth Barrett Browning and the Gothic romances of Ann Radcliffe… Some of this stuff really turned up all the imagery that I’m drawn to, and gave me the confidence to frame my songs. I think, more than anything, it just gave me a big boost in confidence.”
“Yeah! When I read ‘To Strephon’, it dealt with the eternal and the temporary. I was going through a quite tumultuous period, breaking up with my ex wife, and I guess what I was trying to do was work out whether things were falling apart materially or whether things were falling apart spiritually. I came to terms with the breakup, and the song Uncertain Joys is about figuring out what I loved so much about her, the origins of that love, but also the origins of the discord that was going on between us. There was this one line in [To Strephon] that is basically just about be looking forward to the eternity in the abstract or the afterlife where everything is arranged that is just full of love, and we’re free from the tumult of uncertain joys, and it just felt like every time I tried to address a subject on the record, it had something to do with the uncertain joys of this.”
“It just felt like that poem got to the very core of what I was trying to throw weight at with a lot of the material in the songs, particularly when it came to songs like an ‘Incantation’, where for the first time, I’m dealing with these feelings for guys that I’ve had my whole life that I’ve never really consciously, even just sat down and thought through because of the environment in which I grew up. In my head I’m going through this process of falling in love with a guy, not knowing that I was falling in love with him and at the same time, it being taboo growing up in a hyper masculine family and going to an all boys school, where it was all very rough and tumble, and you couldn’t show any real affection to your fellow classmates or anything. There was this disconnect that was happening inside me that I still, having written the song and having come out as bisexual, haven’t really come to terms with. That’s really why we ended the record on Antonin Artaud asking himself “who am I? What am I? Why are we here?” in French. ‘To Strephon’ really cut to the heart, and I had to use that phrase “uncertain joys” in the record.”
Joining the already stacked bill featuring the likes of Frank Carter And The Rattlesnakes, The Wonder Years, Hundred Reasons and many more are Skindred, Deaf Havana, The Bronx, Kid Kapachi and Empire State Bastard, the new project from the imagination of Biffy Clyro’s Simon Neil and Vennart. They will be joined by fellow newcomers Casey, The Xcerts, Maratha, New Pagans, High Vis, As Everything Unfolds, Lake Malice, Prince Daddy & The Hyena, Witch Fever, Origami Angel and even more.
“Not only have we added some huge bands in Skindred, Deaf Havana and instant-legends Empire State Bastard, but we’re stoked to be bringing even more of the most exciting up-and-coming artists to 2000trees 2023”, states head honcho James Scarlett. “It’s just going to get bigger and better, don’t sleep on it if you want to join us. 4 Day Tickets will be the first to go and that’ll be sooner rather than later!”
Known for hosting some of the best and groundbreaking acts within the contemporary global scene alongside championing emerging talent, 2000 Trees Festival has grown massively since its humble and quaint inception; all without sacrificing it’s original ethos. Organised by fans for fans, the festival has long been globally known for it’s ardent approach to promoting the new talent as well it’s intimate atmosphere and beautiful location, resulting in it being regarded as one the best festivals in the country. As always, 2000 Trees 2023 will take place at it’s home of Upcote Farm, Cheltenham between the 5th and 8th July, with further information and tickets available here. See the massive lineup thus far below and just remember – they still have two headliners still be announced.
“I think it was Björk said that it’s like harvest time for a musician,” says Lyndsey McDougall, lead singer of Belfast indie-punks New Pagans, “We’re excited to see how people respond to it.” Their second album, Making Circles of Our Own, just released on 17th of February. Lyndsey spoke to Noizze about her alternative songwriting process and all about her experience of the music industry – good and bad.
Making Circles of Our Own continues the New Pagans tradition of taking an unusual approach to songwriting, looking at topics and themes that you wouldn’t find in your typical indie-rock album. “I use songwriting as a memory thing, and I think that comes from being dyslexic, actually. I use songwriting to capture those things I don’t want to forget,” says Lyndsey. One example of this on the new album comes in the form of ‘Karin Was Not A Rebel’, a song about Swedish interior designer Karin Larsson: “She’s a really interesting character because she’s largely overshadowed by her husband, but he was painting her interiors, yet she’s kind of underplayed in the story. I want to talk about her because I don’t think she’s been talked about enough.”
“A lot of music that I listen to seems to be about love, relationships and all of that is really important, and people connect to that probably more easily than they will to a song about Karin Larsson,” she explains. “But for me, when I was growing up, I always loved songs that mentioned a poet or a story. I love learning.”
The title track of their forthcoming album due for release on March 31st via Submarine Cat Records, ‘Ride Or Die’ shows how Brighton’s ARXX have become the topic of such devotion in a short amount of time. Intense and absolute as the track’s namesake suggests, the single is a rush of swaggering energy that stands as a fierce summery of the band’s commitment to their craft and selves. “To us it’s about a lot of things, primarily it speaks about the kind of commitment and dedication to something you love, that means there is no possible or conceivable way that you would give up on it”, say Arxx on the track.”In one breath it is an unapologetic celebration of queer love, and in the next breath it expresses the unwavering determination that we both hold for our band.” – Dan Hillier
“When it’s eye for an eye, we’ll take two”, bellows forth Allfather on their righteously violent new single ‘Take Their Eyes’. Created from an encyclopedic knowledge of the heavy metal artform and written in response in the rise of contemporary fascism within our crumbling society, ‘Take Their Eyes’ is a flogging of urgent modern metal that bares all the hallmarks of their collective inspirations whilst sounding fresh and urgent. Allfather have long been something of a special secret within the UK’s metal community – with many acknowledging their namesake with knowing grins – but with this single and their forthcoming LP A Violent Truth due in march, it’s inevitable that all will be soon in commune with the Allfather. – Dan Hillier
Exeter’s indie punk darlings Shit Present have returned with their first new track in seven years and it’s been worth the wait. Making waves with their debut EP in 2015 and signing with tastemaker label Specialist Subject, Shit Present have become an integral part of the south-west’s vibrant independent music scene with their particular brand of sarcastic, melodic, emo inspired indie punk. New track ‘Fuck It’ reminds us why we fell in love with their earlier material, with an upbeat, overdriven riff, vocals that careen between tender and howling and multifaceted, tongue in cheek lyrics. We’ll be eagerly awaiting Shit Present’s next move. – Tom Bruce
Swedish melodeath mavericks Avatar have dished up the latest offering, ‘Violence No Matter What’, from their forthcoming album Dance Devil Dance. On first glance, the inclusion of Halestorm‘s Lzzy Hale might be a surprise, but just one listen will convince you just how raucously powerful the pairing is. It also makes no bones about its proudly antifascist stance, as the duo Johannes Eckerström declare “How hard can it be / After almost a century / For you bastards to agree / That no-one gets to be a fucking fascist?” Vocalist Johannes Eckerström explains, “it’s okay to debate and fight and think differently. but there is a limit, and the line must be drawn at authority held with violence, a world view that cannot survive without enemies, a promised return to a fabricated former glory”. You’ll get no disagreement from us, and for anyone that does? Just listen to Lzzy Hale screaming the song title with unbridled fury, then maybe rethink that stance. – Will Marshall
Joining the already stacked lineup today are the Japanese post-rock pioneers MONO. Headlining the festival alongside fellow genre legends And So I Watch You From Afar, their headline set comes as part of their forthcoming European tour and comes following their jaw-dropping set at ArcTanGent Festival last year. Also joining the bill today are Maybeshewill, A.A. Williams, Bo Ningen, ’68, Pupil Slicer, GGGOLDDD, Paranoid Void, Straight Girl, El Moono, A-Tota-So and The Broken Islands. They will all be joining a massive lineup consisting of groundbreaking such as Nordic Giants, Ef, Svalbard, Elephant Tree, Bicurious, Lakes, GGGOLDD, The Guru Guru and many more.
“When we booked the first ever Portals all dayer at the New Cross Inn (South East London) in 2015, never in a million years did I think we would ever book a band with the stature of Mono”, state the organisers of Portals. “They are true pioneers, defining what we now know as post-rock. Their live show mesmerises and tranfixes you, transporting you to new worlds. The band formed in the late 90s, when we weren’t even in our teens, before we even knew what post-rock was. Around that time, grunge, punk and alt-rock were the weird, experimental, counter-culture music that we and our peers fell into. Who knew that the sonic landscape would be changed so dramatically by stripping away the aggression to the bare bones, and rebuilding music through extreme dynamic range and carefully crafted instrumentation. Mono were one of those bands, and it’s an honour to be able to bring them to such a dedicated, enthusiastic and reverent audience, such as our Portals Festival family.”
Portals Festival 2023 takes place at the multipurpose Hackney venue EartH on the 27th and 28th of May. Full information and tickets can be found here. See the full lineup in all it’s glory below.
