Strange Bones
Bootleg, Blackpool
18th March 2016
The north strikes back, specifically Blackpool, as Strange Bones are spat from the unforgivable black sludge some would call the sea, each time welcomed to their Off The Bone gigs by an ever growing crowd as they amplify their increasingly brazen sound time after time.
The tiny, no barrier basement of the Bootleg Social really is rammed tonight. The venue’s small door, wedged between a Chinese restaurant and an estate agents opens into an immersive room of eagerly awaiting souls. When the band enter through the crowd everyone knows it’ll be a night even more destructive than the last.
With ten years previous experience, playing nearly 1000 shows, their return comes with one loud bang as they introduce new single God Save the Teen. This track, saturated with fitful bursts of energy, interrupted by the belligerent storytelling and heavy drums; punctuating verses that will remain in your ears for weeks, rippling through your body like a parasite.
Wading through a small entourage of tracks fists begin to fly through the air faster than neurotransmissions, however slightly delayed by the free JD from the bar. Beats get heavier and melodically rocky riffs are torn out during their session of Pussy Galore’s Flying Circus.
As the night draws to a close the flames burn even higher as they kick off their most ferocious of tracks, SOIA which is nothing short of raw, fuzzy punk rock that’s been shred together by loose edges, making it an absolute tinnitus inducing tune. The crowd chanting along as the band crash into an amalgamation of noise and jeers marking the end of the night, but not before a guitar crashes off the symbols and into the wall. Bobby slings himself over the conveyor belt of sweat and steam that the crowd has become, before being left lying against the drums in a dilapidated state, as every ounce of life has been put into the night.
Strange Bones, comprising of brothers Will and Bobby Bentham, as well as fellow skate-rat friend Stuart Newburn are the first British band to record at the famous Studio 606 in LA, recording their upcoming EP with Foo Fighters’ guitarist Chris Shiflett, which you can hear in its tangible state from April 21st. They will be playing live at the venues below, catch them at a town near you real soon.
April
7th – Manchester, Tiger Lounge (supporting Dead!)
9th – Derby 2Q Festival and Leicester, The Cookie *
15th – Birmingham, Sunflower Lounge *
16th – Sheffield, The Rocking Chair
21st – St Albans, The Horn
22nd – Blackpool, Bootleg Social – EP Release party
23rd – Preston, Ferret
25th – Coventry, Kasbah
28th – London, The Islington
30th – Leeds, Live At Leeds Festival
May
1st – Hull, Welly Club
20th – Brighton, Great Escape
June
10th – Donington, Download Festival
* Supporting The Wholls
Written by: Henry Calvert
Photos: Rob Lee