Ez Luscombe
Cheerbleederz’s third EP Prove Me Wrong is yet another rallying cry of being at the crossroads that is transitioning from your late twenties into your early thirties. In the time between their debut album Even In Jest and the creation of Prove Me Wrong, all three band members experienced transformative life experiences such as grief, new relationships, and moving forward both physically as well as emotionally. These personal concepts have allowed the record to stand out victoriously and therefore showcase these raw, emotional lyrics set to upbeat, bouncy guitars, poppy harmonies, highlighting the importance of sisterhood between three friends in a frightening political environmental, whilst also letting go of people from the past who no longer serve you.
Prove Me Wrong also explores the unpredictability of life, especially on the song ‘Passenger Princess’ which is a three-minute indie banger about learning how to live for yourself, do things that make you happy, and giving yourself direction when life is unpredictable. The dynamic guitars and the whimsical “beep beep” backing vocals akin to classic 1960’s girl groups such as The Supremes and The Ronettes add a further sense of playfulness to the tracks message, and puts light on a concept which people worldwide have been struggling with since the beginning of time.
The London trio dial things back a bit musically during the verses of closing tack ‘You Got It In For Me’, and explore a more vulnerable, yet enthralling as ever side to the band musically. Wood’s vocals take center stage as she articulates the fallout of drifting away from people as life gets in the way and what people may be thinking whilst also maintaining a sense of wistful nostalgia, however the chorus is a faster-paced and more punk-influenced track which captures the internalised anguish of not knowing how others perceive you distinctly.
Produced by Cross’s Happy Accidents bandmate Rich Mandell, (who has also worked with Fresh and Supermilk among others) Cheerbleederz have yet again put together another outstanding EP and compliment each other perfectly across all four tracks, and with another three-date tour approaching in early September, it’s always exciting to see what the trio are up to.