When you think post-punk, you think Joy Division, Echo & the Bunnymen or the revivalists Interpol. These bands all have one thing in common: English as a first language. The focus of this ‘Best of the Bunch’ article however, do not hold this idiosyncrasy. Less Win are Danish and their brand of post-punk definitely focusses on the punk side of post-punk. At the genesis of the genre, many artists took the energy synonymous with punk and then applied introspective lyrics to the basic guitar/bass/drums combination of a normal rock band.
Less Win’s music is formed from a combination of Casper Morilla (vocals, guitar), Patrick Kociszewski (bass) and Matthew Moller (drums) and is more akin to the likes of Perfect Pussy or White Lung than Interpol. “Bayonette” is the embodiment of this hard-hitting aesthetic and is taken from their debut EP released here in the UK, Further through the Danish Big Oil Recording Company.
“Bayonette” holds many characteristics that “Leaders of Men” – an early Joy Division song from An Ideal For Living – had back in 1978, just with a rougher, more aggressive edge to it. The punchy guitar riffs and a hefty bass/drums combination with the Johnny Rotten-esque vocal delivery could almost inspire the same anarchistic feelings that Sex Pistols did ‘back in the day’. The simple composition of the track is an effective one. However, while the composition may be fairly simplistic (as is the norm in the genre), the same cannot be said of the lead guitar riff. The pretty impressive arpeggiated, rough guitar part played by Morilla, while focussed on at times, is used to highlight other characteristics of the song’s composition such as the chorus of “B-A-Y-O-N-E-T-T-E”. Mainly, the song is an homage to the sounds of ’70s and ’80s Manchester and it pulls this off in a very effective way.
“Bayonette” and Further are fitting titles for the song and EP as “Bayonette” cuts into a listener’s consciousness and leaves one wanting to hear more and Further shows a desire to go exactly where the title suggests. Along with the likes of Iceage from the Copenhagen post-punk scene, Less Win are going places. There’s nothing you can do about it; all they need is a larger audience!
Less Win will be launching the EP at Bedroom Bar, London on 17th June!
You can pre-order Further from Bandcamp through Big Oil here.
Check Less Win Out Below:
