Marshall (label)
05 October 2018 (released)
21 September 2018
If you are a fan of classic British rock, songs with punch and swagger, riffery and big hitting rhythms then Bad Touch seem to cover all the bases.
The first time I saw Bad Touch was last year at the Borderline playing alongside the Broken Witt Rebels and as good as BWR were, Bad Touch just blew them into the weeds.
I’ve kept an eye on them since, seeing them alongside Mollie Marriot at the Islington Academy 2 and really digging their last release ‘Truth Be Told’.
So I’ve been wondering just what they can manage after being signed to Marshall’s new label. What has happened is a tightening of focus, compressing all the good things they do into short and sharp songs that bear listening to time and again – frankly I’ve enjoyed the hell out of this one.
The album consists of 13 tracks and every one has a clear identity. There isn’t a single track here I would call filler and the tight format means that everything has to support everything else – no room for aural masturbation.
The first single ‘Skyman’ shows exactly what they are about: 3 minutes of riff, hammering drum and call and response vocals.
‘Believe In Me’ burns with passion, emotive vocals and a killer riff played slow and powerful while ‘Show Me What It Means’ drives along with a real stomping drum line and ‘Hammer Falls’ grabs the ear from the opening guitar line and on through vaulting vocals – this one sounds like a real live number.
My personal favourite is on of the sub-3 minute numbers ‘Dressed To Kill’. Really danceable and not a whit of wasted energy.
The whole album kicks serious ass, in the way that bands who are more than just a collection of musicians can do. Great fun from the opening moments of ‘Lift Your Head Up’ the wistful end of ‘Bury Me (When I’m Gone)’.
