EP Review: Our Souls – I’ve Made A Terrible Mistake

Commenting on why he left Buzzcocks just as they were about to lift off in 1977, Howard Devoto quipped that, “What was once unhealthily fresh is now a clean old hat.” The filth and the fury is definitely missing from a lot of what gets reviewed around here. This is The Punk Site, after all. That is why ‘gruff punk quintet’ Our Souls from Leicester are a breath of foulmouthed unhealthily fresh air. While they are rooted firmly in a modern powerpop punk milieu, Our Souls incorporate bucketfuls of that original first wave ‘couldn’t give a fuck’-ery on this, their second ‘pay what you want’ EP via Bandcamp.

I’ve Made A Terrible Mistake is a gruff, tough and breathless exercise in heavy but melodic punk. There’s a terrific sense of urgency to these five songs – if this is a reflection of the live Our Souls experience, it must be a frantic affair. Top of the heap, literally and subjectively, is the opener To Wound and Wander, Destitute which has all the hallmarks of a classic in the making, closely followed by the magnum opus (at 2:56) that is Histrionics. But it’s all good. Fuck that, it’s all great. What does it sound like? Something like Kid Klumsy covering GBH, but that’s a superficial analysis. It sounds like Our Souls. The production is good and likely faithful to the live sound. This would have been a four star review but for my personal observation that the overall sound could have done with 10% less brutal power and a little bit more polish. Granted, I am listening to MP3 versions. Given the sterling musicianship, I would have liked to hear a bit more definition and separation in the mix but that said, the quality of the songs makes this a first class listen and one I know I’m going to keep coming back to.

I’ve Made A Terrible Mistake is out on 1^st November via Bandcamp.