Photo Credit - Mitch Love
Following the success of their single ‘Party Friends’ earlier this year, the Pretty Uglys are bringing it back full circle to come out with their sophomore album by the same name. These three mates from Perth have shared the stage with some of Australia’s favourite bands such as Sly Withers, Spacey Jane and Ruby Fields.
The band are pretty stoked to be officially releasing a collection of the songs they’ve been playing in their live sets for a while. Even though it may come across as a mixed bag of punk and surf rock tracks, the members say, “putting together these tracks in [this way]... helps solidify our own sound direction from over the past 12 months at least, with both happy and deeper/heavier tracks all in the mix.”
The Pretty Uglys creative process for this EP consisted of using easily accessible arrangement apps like Garageband to demo full tracks - most of these sparking from a simple guitar or bass part that they’ve come up with while rehearsing together. Once a track is ready, they head over to Perth’s very own Sumo Studios to meet with good friend Tristan Sturmer, who helped the boys through the recording and mixing process of their album before they passed it onto George Georgiadis to master. The EP opens with their most recently released single, ‘Emergency Room’. The punchy guitar coupled with the explosive drums definitely starts this project off with a bang. The lyrics are actually based on a true story as well! The Pretty Uglys say “[its] written about a night out which ended with Jax landing in hospital needing stitches in his face, then heading to Perth the next day to play a sold out show with Ruby Fields, it was our biggest show to date at the time.” Although it's one of the heavier songs on the EP, I can definitely imagine this song being a hit played live - lots of headbanging involved, of course. ‘Party Friends’ comes in next and comes in hot, as we’re greeted by catchy guitar riffs, crunchy bass and lyrics that remain reminiscent of the weekend that’s just ended but also excited for the one to come. Declan Byrne of Triple J describes the track as “[one that] has a real good energy that threatens to go turbo but keeps it just right throughout.” Next we’re hit with ‘Puzzle Pieces’, a track that reminds me of lazy summer afternoons spent hanging out with friends. Although it sounds really cool and summery, the lyrics speak about an inner battle that I’m sure we’ve all had at some point in our lives. Placed in the middle of the EP, you’re definitely able to see the story being presented through the songs we’ve heard so far - good times are always met with some not so great times, but it never works in our favour to let it get us down. One of the most mellow tracks, ‘Pleased to Meet Ya’, builds upon the feeling that ‘Puzzle Pieces’ leaves you with and cradles you with that decadent surf-rock combination of catchy guitar melodies and bass line. Hoping you weren’t lulled too much into that mellow vibe, the band comes back strong with ‘Dreamland Delusion’. We are met once again with a strong guitar and bass section which meets in the middle perfectly with the bouncy drums in the chorus. This song expands a bit more on what was discussed lyrically in ‘Puzzle Pieces’ but the Pretty Uglys do a pretty good job of keeping it punchy. The ‘Party Friends’ EP is released everywhere today! To follow up on its release, the Pretty Uglys will be touring WA, bringing the music and the vibes to you wherever you may be. Have a listen to the album below and check them out live when you can, I can guarantee it’ll be a good time! For tour information and tickets, click here.
Crystal Moonsamy
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