Cheap Meat are a band that we discovered back in December supporting fellow Hassle Records labelmates Max Raptor. We became instantly hooked on their rocked up pop-punk sound so leapt at the chance to check out their debut EP The Parts That Show. We had high expectations, but did Cheap Meat meet them?
Opening the release is the title track and you’re thrown into the deep end with fast tempo guitar and drum lines leaving you no space to breathe, as Ross Drummonds vocals come crashing in. As the chorus rolls into action the rough, thrown together vibe provided by the drum lines offers a pop-punk vibe but with an additional, slightly messy twist. Drummond’s vocals are twangy, think musical marmite with their unique edge you’re probably going to really love them or well, just not…we hope you’ll love them just like we do.
Offering their own take on a love song is The Distance Between You & Me, and from the title it’s crystal clear what the lyrical subject is going to be; but rather than making it generic and clichéd the lyrics are golden. Gems such as “no one ever tells you that you can fall in love and never get back anything” and “the slaughtered lamb turned out to be me” are two distinctly different, yet strangely thought provoking, lines. The drumlines provided by Matt Rebeiro will see you pretending that you’re the newest member of CM as they become entwined with nimble, intricate guitar sections. It’s emotive, anthemic and works a dream as a love song with a twist.
Debut single Sweetness Take Me Back has become one of our go-to tracks when we just want a good old sing-a-long. We absolutely love that this track brings together the best elements of the trio; tongue in cheek lyrics, earth shaking choruses, gritty guitar riffs and driving drum lines. You know when a track just screams out live set highlight? Yeah? This without a doubt would be the highlight of a Cheap Meat set because let’s be honest, a big old sing-a-long chorus never hurt anyone!
Closing the release is For A Moment, which takes a heavier approach: stuttering guitar lines set up a dark, angry and fiery finale. We’ve been shown that the trio specialises in huge sing-a-long choruses but honestly this is next level territory. You can’t help but find yourself standing on your own in your bedroom chanting along to “I wanted you to know for a moment it was perfect and everything flowed”. We’ve become the real heart eye emoji with this corker of a track; and that definitely isn’t pop punk of us.
As much as we’re enjoyed this release, For A Moment shines strongly as the highlight for us. However this release wasn’t just perfect for a moment but for its whole duration; we’d expect nothing less from Cheap Meat. Our only disappointment with this release is that it’s just a little short for our liking, but we guess that means that the trio aren’t going to keep us waiting too long for our next fix (hopefully!).
Cheap Meat are playing a Free EP release show on the 10th March at The Black Heart, Camden. Find out more details here. We’ll be heading down and we recommend you do too!
9/10
Standout Track: For A Moment
For Fans Of: Blink-182, Bowling For Soup, Pixies
Written By: Nicola Craig
