Lollipop Listens to...Bolshy.

On Thursday, I was on the train to London, enjoying some of that rare, British sun (I know, crazy right?) and scrolling through my music selection to pick something to match my mood. I was on my way to see one of my closest friends, who I haven't seen in a long time, and it's been a pretty good week, so I needed something happy and sunny. It didn't take long to find...as soon as I hit B, I knew that Bolshy would be the soundtrack to that train journey.

Bolshy are a band I was introduced to last summer, after my husband came back from playing Dirty Weekend festival. Of all the bands he had seen, he knew they would be right up my street: sunny sounding, calypso-y ska. On first listen, I was hooked. The horns, guitars, vocals...where to start? And to top it off, a really strong message behind the lyrics, which I love. 

I soon bought their debut E.P. Radical. Anarchic, Bolshy. Scouse. (available here for just £2!) and it has been one of my go to listens ever since.

The E.P. is 5 tracks long and each has its own style, showing the variety this band brings.

Counting Fucks, the opening track, is a fast tempo number, with a zero fucks attitude (hence the name!). The layers in this song create a really interesting listening experience, drifting between clean, calm vocals and fast tempo-ed guitars, with a really dirty sounding trumpet solo (in the best possible way; I love the way it sounds!), all underpinned with a stunning bass line. A really catchy opener...I have had it stuck in my head so many times and usually when it would be really inappropriate to start singing!

The next track, Dead Worm, is a calypso inspired track, with a much calmer sound (it reminds me of Dirty Rev's later stuff.) It's a bit more stripped back but builds really nicely and is definitely one for those lovely, sunny days. Spaceman (track four) also channels this sunnier sound. It is slightly faster, with a much more urgent bass line, pulling you through with the fast paced horns and twisting vocals (I'm so envious of the singer's stunning voice!). It eventually breaks down into a more dub sounding beat, with echoing upstrokes on the guitars and complex bass line, the odd blast of horns in the background, before picking up again to the chorus.

Payroll Call is an obvious message to those who have tried to steer them away from a musical path to "regular" jobs. The sound of this song is a lot darker and dirtier than the other songs (again, in a really good way!) The shared vocals on this are a really nice touch and I would love to hear more of it in their music.

The E.P. ends on No Means No, a feminist number - definitely something which I have a lot of time for. This song is a lot heavier than the rest, which I think definitely backs up their anger towards rape culture and victim shaming. Again, this track is a journey, with some really hectic, heavy parts and some calmer parts, highlighting the talent of the individual musicians in the band. I love the bass and drums together in the break down towards the end and the alternating horns as it begins to pick up again. They really are a talented bunch!

As someone who sings for a ska-punk band (Take Warning - our debut E.P. can be found here), these guys are really something I aspire to. Can't wait to catch them live!

Laura xx