ALBUM REVIEW: Pit Pony – Dead Stars (Clue Records/EMI North)
Pit Pony are a five-piece from Newcastle who play an intoxicating brand of fuzz-rock which is steeped in the spirit of punk and post-punk.
Formed in 2017, life experience and regional and personal identity form the backbone of their sound, which is influenced by the likes of Nadine Shah and The Futureheads.
Dead Stars is their second album, and it sees them spread their musical canvas even broader than their excellent 2022 debut World To Me.
The band dip a toe into everything from ’50s doo-wop to heavy rock. At the heart of it all is singer Jackie Purver, whose wonderful Geordie accent stands out loud and proud in a scene dominated by fake US mannerisms.
Pit Pony have won plaudits from influential DJs like BBC 6 Music’s Steve Lamacq, Mary Anne Hobbs and Shaun Keaveny, who described them as “fucking brilliant”.
Dead Stars kicks off with At Dawn, the latest single, which tells a story about being young and caught up in things you think will last forever, only to find they’re actually fleeting. It has a strong post-punk feel, and the soaring vocals are backed by a driving rhythm and shimmering guitar.
Well Well, a previous single, ups the ante, with its propulsive beat and changing dynamic. It’s catchy as hell, and veers between leaving lots of space between elements and filling every available second.
This Love of Mine is more atmospheric and laid back, with Jackie’s voice taking centre stage. It’s about parenthood, and how becoming a mother changes your outlook on everything.
Something In The Water, about pollution in our rivers, lakes and seas, has a languid start before bursting into life with punchy guitar, bass and drums and even a violin. Halfway through, droning guitars change the vibe completely, sounding almost portentious.
Standout track
The album’s standout track is Cut Open, a lush slice of doo-wop about imposter syndrome. It’s one of those delightfully nostalgic songs which Richard Hawley excels at, which could have been written any time in the last 60 years. Full of girl group imagery, it showcases Jackie’s voice at its best, and I absolutely love the way she pronounces ‘spectre’ – ‘spekkta’.
From girl group gloss to visceral guitar; we shift next to Stagnant Pool, which isn’t about the environment, but motherhood. There’s an eastern feel to the guitars in No Shame, which is about how we treat others, and it ends with a glorious post-punk wig-out of fuzzy guitars.
Vacancy, a previous single, has a spiky guitar and bobbling bassline, and its subject matter is the all-pervading influence of social media. It also has one of the record’s biggest earworms in the chanted mantra of “here we go, here we go.”
We’re nearing the end now, and there’s a definite change of mood. Waves is a gentle, contemplative song about ageing, and it’s followed by another slow-burner, title track Dead Stars, a suitably cinematic song about the universe and night sky.
This is an album which will reveal some new texture every time you listen to it. At times it’s sparse but at others so dense that it’s almost a sensory overload. You need to buy this if you love new music. 9/10.
- Pit Pony will promote Dead Stars with a seven-date tour beginning at Pop Recs in Sunderland on 4 April. They also play dates in Leeds, Glasgow and Newcastle later in the year.
