Album review: Breakfast Muff

Breakfast Muff - Eurgh! (Amour Foo)

IT BEGINS with a 50 second burst positioned somewhere between shouty noise and a song, before changing tack with a gently lo-fi piece of tunefully scratchy pop. In 164 seconds Breakfast Muff have set out their musical stall.

Then comes 'R U A Feminist' on this debut album by the Glaswegian trio of Eilidh McMillan, Simone Wilson, and Cal Donnelly: "You're a feminist until I won't f**k you...Just because I say I love you/doesn't give you my consent." In those two lines they highlight a wealth of issues around consent, male privilege, and how deeply embedded patriarchy and toxic masculinity can be, even in the most seemingly well meaning guys.

Yet the trio are not lecturing, they approach their subjects, be it labelling and sexuality ('I Like To' ) or bullying ('Lunch Money' ), with humour and intelligence, accompanied by music which can be pounding hardcore ('Feast' ); riff heavy, anthemic punk ('Duvet' ); or Pixies-esque rage ('Raspberry Pavlova' ).

And when they want to, they have a wonderful melodic-pop sense, wedded to a proudly rough and ready lo-fi - just listen to the glorious, lilting, shoegaze waltz and dreamy vocals of 'Clam' - values that run deep in the tradition of Scottish alternative and independent music.

 

Page generated in 0.1377 seconds.