Manchester Punk Festival Releases 38th Compilation
Manchester Punk Festival have released the 38th volume of their compilation series ahead of this year’s festival. Manchester Punk Festival Vol. 38 is…
Kind Of Acoustic - Xtra Mile Recordings
After their full on European tour supporting Laura Jane Grace And The Trauma Tropes, Pet Needs are now ready to release this introspective look back at their first three albums. I always feel that acoustic albums are an insight into the songs at their rawest, and Pet Needs have approached these songs in exactly that way. This recording has a demo feel about it, songs they had fun recording, and songs they felt needed to be given to the fans as they started out.
Opening up and letting in the emotion at full effect is how I always tend to hear acoustic tracks, and this is exactly how Pet Needs seem to have attacked these already accomplished songs, allowing them to grow into themselves in ways that might not have been imagined when they first recorded them for the albums. ‘Outline’ is the song they’ve chosen to kick this one off, and why not. This song has an air of inevitability about it, maybe its a look at why the band got its head up and put the whole life of nothingness behind them, its somber in its ambience and delivery, which adds to the feeling of “but for the grace of god” and all that. I think why I’ve alway liked Pet Needs is the fact that they never forget where they came from or where they could still end up, the songs are poetic pop at its very best, but these incarnations take all this and add another layer. ‘Scratch Cards’ rocks up next, do I hear a banjo in there? Then we have the super catchy ‘Fingernails’ which keeps that singalong life to it, but also gives you a true feels for it foreboding.
Its hard to write up what you feel about songs that have already been written about many many times, but this album is so well crafted that, even though the songs are the same, they definitely take on a new life. ‘The Burning Building’ is one of the tracks that stands out, it’s reimagined to a folk punk sound, in fact I get that feel from a few of the songs in here, ‘Lost Again’, ‘Self Restraint’ and ‘Overcompensating’ come to mind. The use of classical styles, like the piano led apocalyptic ballad ‘Fear For The Whole Damn World’ and the classical guitar sound in ‘Punk Isn’t Dead’ that lets it grow new wings.
If you’re already a fan or wanting to dip your ears into what this band can and has done, then this is a vantage point album that either opens new realms for songs you already know, or gives you an open door to step into.
Out Now….. Head over to the Pet Needs website for everything.