Pynch 'Howling at a Concrete Moon'

Much awaited debut album from Kent four piece PYNCH released 14th April 

The four-piece band from Kent, Pynch came to prominence and attention in the latter part of 2019 when their debut single 'Disco Lights' appeared on the esteemed Speedy Wunderground label and then they released the track 'Somebody Else' in May 2020 which became an underground anthem for dealing with pandemic which was a rage against the situation that many people found themselves in, and rightly so the single was a breakthrough with recognition ranging from The Guardian to NME.

Pynch are by their own admission, a DIY band who hailed from Margate, Kent - a building in the town is basis for the album cover art - and with little more than the records made in Spencer Enock's home. Enock is lead guitar and vocals in the band ably assisted by Julianna Hopkins' keys, Scott Enock's bassline and James Rees on synths.

The musical influences of this band range from dreampop, britpop to electronica in the rich late 20th century tradition of bands ranging from Pet Shop Boys to Depeche Mode and up to the Mystery Jets. Yet it is all about the situation the band find themselves in, this is a post-austerity album an album full of disillusionment and crisis in dealing with the existentialism and longing for halcyon days that parents used to talk about it. There is a cynicism that runs throughout the album and yet that social commentary gives way heartfelt reflection and general optimism for better days by album's end.

From the opening track 'Haven't Lived A Day' the concept of trying to find answers amidst the madness and the difficulty of living is at the forefront of Enock's lyrics 'Trying to figure out what I'm feeling/Trying to understand just what I'm seeing' - the twin threads are seemingly enmeshed and attempted to untangle across the ten-track running time.

The sequencing of this album should be applauded, second track is 'Disco Lights' a key track in their history followed by most recent single 'Tin Foil' another track with humorous takes on the collision between emotion and worth, cynicism and sincerity. It is a fine balance that Enock navigates very well - the tracks do not speak of a band laying everything on the line, merely a precursor for more to say in the future which bodes well.

Nostalgia appears in the track '2009', followed by the two-part 'The City' which delves into the malaise of life then with 'Karaoke' which is about lost love. Penultimate track 'London' is about the living crisis and the general disappointment his generation feels towards governance and how austerity has left that generation to flounder while those before them flourish.

'I just want to feel something real'

When this listener first heard 'Somebody Else' it was ear-opening to a sound that was very much of the moment and artists aware of the moment they are living in during this tumultuous period of world history - the world keeps turning even when you stand still. That track you felt would have been the album opener, and yet it makes sense that it closes the album having been around for nearly three years it serves as self-referential to the band themselves supplying answers to that which they seek. That sense of melancholic ennui that underlies so much of the album is that which you end with, but that is not a detriment more a triumph for Pynch.

It is a testament to them that they can create an album of this maturity and intent, not being overawed by the level of expectation that was awaiting them. 

This is one of the best debut albums of recent times, a joy to listen to and for this listener who has followed the band from the early singles a pleasure to see the long playing album rise to the occasion and fully deliver on that promise.

Howling at a Concrete Moon is out on Chillburn Recordings from April 14th.