Muncie Girls – From Caplan To Belsize

The Muncie Girls are a Punk Rock band from Exeter, England who have been building a fan base through consistent tours, and by releasing EP’s and split singles consistently since 2012.  They entered The Ranch studio in Southampton, England at the tail end of 2015 to record their debut album, and what an impressive first offering this is. From Caplan To Belsize, the title is a reference to the Sylvia Plath novel The Bell Jar, contains ten tracks of catchy indie influenced punk rock, but this is no exercise in shoegazing, this is a lively and uplifting album which suggests a maturity beyond their tender years.

Given the sound of this album it’s hard to believe the Muncie Girls are only a trio, the guitars chug merrily along and the bass is pleasingly high in the mix and drives the album forward, this solid soundtrack coupled with the breathless female vocals has produced  a dynamic and engaging debut. The album starts with Learn In School, and like many great albums before it, track one side one instantly grabs your attention, they ease off the throttle midway through the album, presumably so you can catch your breath, before they build back up to close with the impressive No Recording. For me what truly sets Muncie Girls apart is the lyrical content, this is an eloquent album with a social conscience, especially on the track Respect, which is a hard hitting attack on gender inequality and rape culture. For me this is important as the opposition to accepted prejudices and inequalities needs a voice, and I’ve always felt that punk and politics are a good marriage.

This is a well crafted and mature album which is both musically and lyrically impressive and I’m looking forward to hearing what he future brings from this trio.