Combine a tape-recording project with what frontman Jake Brooks calls “a crazed pasta making writing spree” and you have the latest single by Retail Drugs. ‘Person A’ is Brooks’ tongue-in-cheek take on the awkward experience of leaving a bad gig early.
Self-produced by Brooks (also a member of Brooklyn-based band Laveda) and drummer Josiah Martuscello, ‘Person A’ is about facing an unexpected mundanity to live music, summarised by Brooks as “wanting to Irish goodbye at a show you paid to go to”. As a track capturing the feeling of wanting to leave the venue on arrival, Brooks knows bad performance (and confidently implies you won’t find it with Retail Drugs).
A two-minute angsty plea for higher-spirited live music, and a call to artists to inject a presence into their persona, the single is a worked-up ball of energy. Playful in theme yet lo-fi and distorted in delivery, ‘Person A’ achieves exactly what Brooks asks for in his lyrics – to be captivated.
Finding inspiration in bridging the gap between instrumental equipment and the human voice, the band lead with droning bass, unbreakable energy and layers of analogue instrumentation in the latest single. In Brooks’ own words, “I was doing this low guttural shout talking trying to mimic the distortion of the amp”. Powering around New York city with home tapes and a drive to play every DIY show along the way, Retail Drugs demand to be heard.
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Issue Fifty-Five features Model/Actriz, YHWH Nailgun, The Orchestra (For Now), Westside Cowboy, Car Seat Headrest, Real Farmer, School Fair, Elias Rønnenfelt, feeble little horse, Kissing On Camera, Pooneh Ghana and Rhi Dancey.
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