Staff Reviews

Trash Kit - Confidence

Review by Tom Fenwick

A tarnished little gem amongst the late 2014 releases.»

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Although Trash Kit have their forebears in bands like X-Ray Spex, The Ex and The Raincoats, their sound is very much their own take on facing forwards. Galloping polyrhythms, overlapping sung-spoke lyrics and entwining guitars are all drawn together into a taut unity, sounding willfully alive. As a follow up to their exuberant debut album, 'Confidence' sticks with the "play it all live" pluck we've come to expect from Trash Kit. There's a minimal bent, a lyrical directness, an unadorned ethic that all evokes the sense that the song is being written at the same time as it's performed. Yet whilst the first album at times felt too fleeting, its succinct songs flashing by so fast, 'Confidence' is startlingly more assured, allowing ideas to develop, conclusions to be gathered. Tracks like 'Hair', 'Skin' and 'Boredom' embrace dynamics like never before. Their clatter and chime are complimented through subtler passages of introspection and the occasional noisy breakdown, with snare and cymbals approaching roar. Ros is joined by her previous bandmate Verity Susman (of Electrelane) on a few tracks including the adventurous 'Shyness' and lead single 'Medicine', lending some fluently inventive saxophone flourishes. It all adds to the heady, sensation of free-falling through the album. A feeling that the horizon has become broader. 'Confidence' is a robust album with several themes at its heart that keep reappearing. Lyrically the tracks deal with identity, miscommunication, the passing of time and listening closer. Trash Kit are unmatched at making the personal poetic and vice versa, they never become overwrought, they just keep things honest and follow their natural course. Overall a feeling that you must run with the moment and trust in yourself emerges, echoed brilliantly through the instrumentation. There's a restless energy that abounds, a momentum growing stronger, an alchemy at play between each member of Trash Kit and between each song on 'Confidence'. It's this reason why we should listen closer, listen to the sum of the parts, listen to ourselves. One day we'll find gold where once there was only hope. Verity Susman of Electrelane guests on several tracks.
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