Vanity Rose – Jubilee

Who is Vanity Rose I might hear you say, well if you have had your head in the sand for the past couple of years, then I get that question, but if like most you have been hitting the social media net, then you will be well aware of this force to be reckoned with in the Punk Rock world.  A woman who never takes anything as not possible, and has set herself on a course to knock down walls and follow on from ground breaking artists like Poly Styrene, Jordan, Siouxsie Sioux and PJ Harvey.  To say this is DIY punk at its very very best, would not be stretching things any further than it deserves, everything is fully controlled by Vanity, down to the music, the video’s and everything else that’s needed to get her music/art out to the right audience.

So where do we go with this her third album, well onwards and upwards would be a simple answer.  13 tracks that take you right back to the day you heard the strains of the likes of  X-Ray Specs with the added strength that she is doing this almost single handedly, with the exception of the stalwart of Mat Roberts on drums, you are transported on a journey of single minded pure guitar punk that has every inch of rawness that this music deserves to have, opener ‘I Don’t Care’ has all the grunge of the Black Flag song of the same name, but it also Rock n Rolls as hard as the Ramones too, which kind of fits in perfectly as you always get the feeling that the Ramones are always there in the background of all her music, which leads us to the cover of ‘Blitzkrieg Bop’ a cover that is 100% original and Vanity makes it her own. 

What’s never too far away within the fabric of this album is the fact that Vanity channels her inner Iggy Pop to such a point that you are at times wondering if she is not actually Iggy in-carnet, songs like ‘Control Of Animal’ and ‘Rachel Acid’ give you a shiver down the spine and as does pretty much every inch of this album, takes you right back to when it all began and all at the same time has you loving what the future of punk can still be.  The wonderful ‘Eat The Rich’ is an example of the pure punk anarcho that sits at the neatly with what this album represents, it’s a simple lyrical shot across the bow with musical simplicity, a wonderful bass line that sits neatly with a powerful guitar riff.

If you’ve never seen or heard of Vanity before now, then I would fully recommend this album as a starting point, although the first two albums are just as good, this somehow captures the essence of what she is striving to do within her artistic life, the fact that it’s named after and dedicated to the film Jubilee which Jordan Mooney appeared in, seems to give it so much more potency and fuck you attitude.  Who cannot fail to love songs like ‘Shut Ya Mouth’, ‘Butt Crush’, ‘Stand Up’, songs that just scream at the tops of their lungs “i’ll do what the fuck I want and fuck you if you try and stop me” , which is a feeling you get from and take away with you after every song has sliced and diced you ears to shreds.  

Altogether an an artist and album that should and does deserve every inch of any adulation they get, Punk Rock at it rawest and best, exactly how it should be!

If you like your music, loud, raw, unforgiving and damn right in ya face, then this album will blow you head fully off your shoulders, and if you don’t, then fuck off and go put some Ed Sheeran on, cos this ‘Giant Girl’ don’t need you. 

PS.  Just look how much better the music world looks at the moment, Soap Girls, Vanity Rose, Hands Off Gretel and Pussy Riot…..  yeah and the rest!

Out now fully DIY. Go connect with Vanity on her FACEBOOK SPOTIFY INSTAGRAM and YOUTUBE