New music review: New Zealand post-punks Swallow the Rat debuted EP
At The Cosmic Clash we’re constantly searching for great, new music that satisfies our urge for the heavy, distorted guitars of post-punk. We’re also partial to to drifting off into a dreamy, hazy shoe-gaze-land. New Zealand’s Swallow the Rat checks both of those boxes and then some with members of Austin’s my education, New Zealand’s, Lost Rockets, Deathbeam and Body Corporate forming a post-punk / dream-gaze super-group international hybrid of sorts. We think music nerds (like us) will gravitate towards this act similar to our love for local shoe-gaze/dream pop act, Blushing who draw inspiration from similar sources.
Comprised of Brian Purington (my education), Sam Vercoe (Lost Rockets), Hayden Fritchley (Deathbeam) and Stephen Horsley (Body Corporate), Swallow the Rat wasted no time after forming in late 2017, laying down their first tracks January of 2018. The foursome collaborated with Nick Abbott (Crowded House, Keane) to record and mix the songs at Northwestern Recorders in Auckland. The material was then mastered by Alex Lyon at The Bubble Studios in Austin. The songs were released on Headbump Records. The project is truly a transcontinental effort by all parties involved.
Those three singles, “Echoes of a Tide”, “New Cross” and “Shifting Sand” add up to the band’s self-titled debut EP which can be pre-ordered on 7″ vinyl via the Pledge Music platform. Proceeds from vinyl sales will help fund the Swallow the Rat’s upcoming tour which includes a stop in Austin at next year’s SXSW Music Festival where the sonically-charged group hope to attract more attention.
The entire digital album is already available via Bandcamp. We’ve been streaming the songs all day in The Cosmic Clash editorial offices. If you like what you hear, it’d be worth plunking down $15 for that rad, translucent green wax Swallow the Rat made. For an extra $10 bucks fans can grab a limited edition T-shirt designed by Fritchley. We’re certain the record will be one of the cooler seven-inch vinyls we’ll have on hand in our listening room.
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