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June/July 2005
Article and Interview from Splinter Magazine
by Miss Fliss.
"Handbags at Dawn's music conjoures up images of Friday nights in real rough pubs chock full of beery, tattooed, dart-throwing, glass-chucking Chav thugs. Except, like all bands of worth, Handbags contradict everything they write about...
- Full article
"'I'm the Fuckin' Geezer' from London band Handbags at Dawn is the beer-guzzling, womanising anthem you've been craving - with its loutish exterior protruding over the motherfuckingly-cool bass, and possibly the build-up of the year resulting in one Irish mouthing off session. You lahve it."
- Fake DIY
"London anti-folk heroes with the swagger and attitude of a deranged
buffalo running amok down Islington high street."
- The Articles
"HANDBAGS AT DAWN are the sound of an anti-folk collision between The Fall and Eighties Matchbox B-Line Disaster. Recent gigs at venues such as the much revered Brixton Windmill have seen them impress and distress in equal measure!"
- Mowhak
"The Handbags remind me of a more melodic/punk/folk version of those reprobates from the 80's The Macc Lads."
- Mick In The UK
January 2005
Rock Sound review The Guantanamo Babes EP
in their Demos section
New York City, January 2005
Inside Virgin Megastore, Union Square: Mmmm, what have we here? An English magazine, perchance...?
And who on earth could these exciting young fellows they're writing about be?
The Guantanamo Babes EP got 7/10 - higher marks than any other demo that month! Thanks Rock Sound!
While Rock Sound is actually a British magazine, we thought we'd hammer the point home that we did find it available in America,
and thus we can tick America off our list of territories to conquer.
14 July 2004
Review of The Guantanamo Babes EP on purerock.de
Very kindly translated by Nadine Schubert.
The type of music that Handbags at Dawn makes is hard to explain. So is the feeling the music creates. But no matter what comes to your
mind when thinking about the band, the songs or the feeling - it's not a bad thing at all! HAD are (yet) a relatively unknown band from
Britain, who don't have a record deal, but everything else required to convince an audience even outside the UK. It's possible that some
listeners might describe the music that Shane Rennick (born in Ireland, singer), Matty Van Roden (dr), Matt Lancashire (d/p) and Tim
Steele (b) have produced since 2003 as "hardly accessible", but after you have listened to it once, you'll see, it isn't. Fairly soon
you'll realize what HAD are: great fun.
How could you actually describe the style of this band? It's difficult, if not impossible; too many influences can be found within the
three songs that are unfortunately quite short. Glimpses of The Strokes or other retro-bands can be found (though it's probably unfair
to maintain that HAD copy these, there's rather a distant relation) as well as britpoppy spleen and a lot of Folk, which accompanied
all of them for some time, perhaps. The Streets meets Brandon Dicamillo meets The Decemberists meets The Libertines? Even this
description wouldn't be suitable, because HAD are something unique, but still as British as only Mike Skinner could be. Already the
first song "I'm the fucking geezer" is so simple and refreshingly snotty, it's hard to get the chorus out of your head. I'm the fucking
geezer. One might believe the voice of Shane (whose age is hard to guess) immediately. Finally a band that comes out of its shell
despite being unknown. Wild screaming and catchy tunes flirt with austere charm.
Friends of music who have dedicated themselves to "pure rock" and self-entitled experts might merely smile at their music. But the
smiles of those who discover the essence of their music, will broaden with every time you listen to the EP (and this works well sooo
many times)
Conclusion:
A band that deserves a record deal! Their style is unique. Their music is refreshingly different. As was said before, listening to
HAD is simply great fun.
Only requirement: Please don't take their music too seriously.
(It's an EP, therefore no rating)
[ Original German article ]
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