Based in Boston, Denzil Leach is the drummer in art rock outfit Squitch, who released a great album on Disposable America late last year, and also lends vocals to the gloriously messy garage collective The Chives. But as well as their work with bands, Leach is also a solo artist and today releases a brand new six song EP, titled Hot Shot.
Released on Erased! Tapes, Hot Shot is a 13-minute blast of noisy but melodic indie pop. Equal parts sludgy and energetic, Hot Shot finds impossibly catchy patterns amidst lo-fi chaos, somehow crafting perfect little pop songs from awkward, angular building blocks. The result is like listening to your favourite garage band play pop songs through the wall as you stand in a crusty basement bathroom wallpapered in peeling punk posters and Sharpie graffiti.
Opener ‘Start it Up’ bursts to life from scratchy guitar all brash intensity and unpredictable tempo changes. It’s the perfect introduction to the Denzil Leach M.O.—loud and raw and erratic in the best way possible. ‘My Body’ follows up with a slice of ramshackle rock & roll, its lopsided rhythm interspersed by lulls, moments of doubt or contemplation Leach shakes off until the whole thing eventually breaks down.
A similar sensation occurs across the release as a whole. Runs of buoyant energy which spark to life and slam the pedal to the metal, no matter how short lived the fun might be. Take ‘Sunshine’, its irrepressible momentum gradually burning itself out as the track progresses, slowly losing shape and unravelling to nothing. Things get heavy on ‘Fish’, the ominously heavy distorted guitar pounding behind Leach’s staccato yelped vocals. But this can’t sustain itself either, the thick, syrupy atmosphere punctured after around a minute as the song spirals down a slip ‘n slide of agitated guitar and frantic percussion.
It’s perhaps telling then that the coolest, tautest track, ‘On the Dome,’ is the most successful in maintaining its rhythm, but follow-up and closer ‘Vincent’ returns to the temperamental volatility once more. Needling with sharp turns and breathless yelps, riding the ebb and flow of the beat with carefree swagger. Which is perhaps the lasting message of Hot Shot. Why fight for stability when turbulence can be so fun?
Cover design/layout by Enne Goldstein