The world is currently on fire. Donald Trump has been re-elected as president of the US, women’s rights are under threat, transphobia is rampant across the world and violence continues to rain down on Gaza. To ring in this new year, Brighton punk duo Lambrini Girls come bearing a gift: ‘Who Let The Dogs Out’.
READ MORE: Lambrini Girls are all bark and tons of bite
After opening for IDLES and playing huge festivals like Glasto and Reading and Leeds, Lambrini Girls are unleashing their balls-to-the-wall debut album. Packed with anger and raw energy, ‘Who Let The Dogs Out’ is a giant “fuck you” to the state of the world right now.
Guitarist and vocalist Phoebe Lunny and bassist Lilly Macieira get straight to the point with album opener ‘Bad Apple’, a distorted riot of a track that calls out rotten cops. “Officer what seems to be the problem? / Or can we only know post mortem?” Lunny demands in her signature raspy screech. It’s a haunting reflection of modern police brutality and misconduct which saw a 50 per cent rise in the number of police officers sacked and barred in the UK last year. Meanwhile, 956 civilians were reportedly shot to death by authorities in the US over eight years.
A bulk of the album sees Lunny and Macieira hold a mirror to the current fractured state of society. They take aim at gentrification in ‘You’re Not From Round Here’, where Lunny’s howled protest against the destruction of neighbourhood identity makes you want to unleash yourself in the middle of a mosh pit: “Town hall becomes a brewery / Furthering disparity / Drowning out sense of what was community.” Meanwhile, ‘Company Culture’ addresses sexual harassment within the workplace, and the electrifying ‘Big Dick Energy’ highlights dangerous male entitlement.
However, softer, personal moments from Lambrini Girls still shine through. Complete with a rolling, fuzzy bassline and pounding drumbeat, ‘Nothing Tastes As Good As It Feels’ takes on the struggle of an eating disorder, Lunny declaring:“Kate Moss gives no fucks that my period has stopped / I wish I was skinny / but I’ll never be enough.”
The anthemic ‘No Homo’, reminiscent of The Donnas’ early discography, sees the rockers infuse deep basslines and a fierce guitar solo with cheeky and witty yet vulnerable lyrics about a same-sex relationship: “I said I liked the way she talked / But then I said no homo / But her eloquence a renaissance / The softest tone well spoken”. It’s a bright and refreshing take on a topic that can be deeply, dauntingly personal and daunting.
With ‘Who Let The Dogs Out’, Lambrini Girls prove punk is alive and kicking. They’re unapologetically amplifying chaos, calling out societal wrongs, and daring us all to feel something. This record is loud, raw, and impossible to ignore.
Details
Release date: January 10, 2025
Record label: City Slang
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