thistle., a young trio from the UK, makes grungy emo with murky, fuzzy production and a headlong sense of melody. They sound like every retro ’90s trend happening in present-day DIY guitar-rock, all blended together into short, sharp, polished gems. Earlier this year, thistle. released their impressive debut EP it’s nice to see you, stranger. (These guys must hate capital letters.) Now, they’ve signed with the boutique London label Rex Recs and released the new single “tied.”
“tied” is a short song, barely a minute and a half, but it crams in tons of warm, likable melody. It’s impressive on an almost technical level to hear these kids speed-run through old-school indie signifiers so effortlessly. In a press release, the band says, “‘tied’ is a tribute to the emotional hardcore bands that we grew up on. The lyrics explore the relentless grind of 9-5 work. It flips between optimism and a feeling of defeat… something we’re always looking for in our music.” Below, check out thistle.’s homemade “tied” video and their upcoming live shows.
TOUR DATES:
11/23 – Nottingham, UK @ Bodega *
11/25 – Birmingham, UK @ Dead Wax *
11/27 – Milton Keynes, UK @ Crawford Arms *
11/29 – Bournemouth, UK @ Bear Cave *
11/30 – Exeter, UK @ Cavern Club *
12/02 – Cardiff, UK @ Clwb lfor Bach *
12/03 – Bristol, UK @ Exchange *
12/17 – London, UK @ The Lexington
1/26 – Birmingham, UK @ Sunflower Lounge
1/28 – Manchester, UK @ The Lodge
1/29 – Leeds, UK @ Oporto
1/30 – Newcastle, UK @ Zerox
1/31 – Edinburgh, UK @ Mash House
2/01 – Norwich, UK @ Voodoo Daddy’s
3/28 – Bristol, UK @ Ritual Union Festival
7/11 – Withington, UK @ 2000 Trees Festival
* with Humour
