Grasshopper, a Brighton/Manchester four piece are made in the image of national treasures Joy Division, The Fall and Bauhaus.
Their new EP 'Stricken', was released at the end of November and has been gaining well deserved attention. At a glance, the desolation is striking, but, as their introspection washes over you, a bond forms, an intimate sense of us vs the world.
With the huge of success of Editors in the last decade, Javi Fedrick's vocal will inevitably draw parallels to Editors’ Tom Smith. However, EP opener ‘Grin’, with its long a Capella section, gives Fedrick a chance to clearly define himself so that, when the crisp jingle jangle guitars collide with his brutality, a new world has truly opened up.
'The Hand On The Knife’ and 'I Think It's Time To Wake Up Now' both contain the razor sharp rhythm of Bauhaus and the emotive power of The Chameleons’ Mark Burgess. It allows the merest chinks of light to creep into lyrics such as “the ceiling screams: you won’t get through today” and “I see you shaking, fury making”.
This kind of rebellion and dystopian landscape creation, opened up by Cabbage and The Blinders in 2018, couldn’t feel more appropriate at the beginning of 2019. The bleak grey skies of Brexit loom over us all like some giant morose dog turd, this is the aggressive despondent release needed.
*Image courtesy of Jim Federick
You can buy the EP here: https://bandgrasshopper.bandcamp.com/album/stricken-ep