Luke Bower takes a look at the latest offering from Getdown Services
Enigmatic Bristol duo Getdown Services have been doing the rounds in the alternative music scene as of late, with their uncompromising smorgasbord of self-assertive, comedic lyrics and disco dance punk providing the perfect antidote to the ever perpetuating mountain of landfill indie. They’ve seamlessly made a name for themselves as a live tour de force, with gigs being characterised with their signature sweat infused danceability, complemented effortlessly by the duo’s absurdity that operates somewhere between watching your embarrassing uncle do karaoke and genuine artistic genius. It’s said live set that has amassed a worthy following for the duo, both in the UK and overseas, with each gig they announce seeming to sell out at the drop of a hat.
And it’s not as though the music itself doesn’t live up to the energy of their live performances either. Debut full length album Crisps released last year, and leftovers EP Crumbs that followed soon after, ludicrously satirise 21st Century working class frustration in all its glory, from the appropriate slagging off of landlords in Biscuit Tin, the resentment of Jamie Oliver’s 15 Minute Meals in Get Back Jamie and the hilarious comparison of toxic masculinity to Steve Backshall’s masterpiece of television in Deadly 60. Their debut record is one that soundtracked my final year of University and the writing of my dissertation, which becomes increasingly ridiculous to visualise with lyrics like “the Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe? More like the twat, the twat and the twat’.
Their approach to music on the whole is one that is outlandish and silly, but also one that is grounded in sincerity and a sort of collective resentment and scathing critique of the modern day. Despite the music’s lyrical pessimism, Getdown’s Ben and Josh remain consistently appreciative and overwhelmed in their newfound successes if their Instagram is anything to go by: posting selfies with Pete Doherty after supporting him back in August, and extensively documenting their European escapades whilst on tour there over the summer. Their earnest gratitude to the support they’ve been receiving is beyond refreshing as a music fan where it seems almost all band’s are unsentimental and insincere when they post on social media.
Their new single I’m Not Feeling It is no deviation to the tried and tested Getdown Services formula, full to the brim with glistening disco pop synthesisers and psychedelic guitar leads that contrast excellently to the dead pan vocal delivery of Josh Law. Its lyrical content diverges between sombre desperation and comedic agitation, with Law expressing how “it’s all death, no love” at one moment and complaining how ‘if you can cut your own lawn, why’d you need a bloke round doing it?” at the next. The whole track is self-described by the band as a ‘disco-y tune about being depressed’, and it’s exactly that: a pertinent portrait of contemporary misery that somehow might be their grooviest track yet. This lyrical charm and catharsis echoes dance punk groups that Getdown Services clearly take influence from, a la LCD Soundsystem’s Losing My Edge or !!!’s Pardon My Freedom.
I’m Not Feeling It feels like the track that is primed to propel Getdown Services into further stardom, bringing with it the gravitas that deserves to be appreciated in the same vein as other dance-adjacent post punk outfits like Yard Act, Fat Dog and Deadletter. It comes with the announcement of new EP Your Medal’s in the Post which is out on November 14th via Breakfast Records, coinciding with their November UK tour which boasts dates at Manchester’s YES Basement and the Lexington in London. If that wasn’t enough, the duo are also set for a full band performance at Strange Brew in Bristol, which is sure to round off a stellar year for the band. It’s safe to say that the UK dance punk revival is alive and well, and Getdown Services are sat comfortably at the helm.
Luke Bower
Edited by Alice Beard
Single cover courtesy of Getdown Services
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