Words by Matthew Doyle. @mmmmdoyle
If you’ve ever wondered what would be great music for a Godzilla movie with robots who know martial arts, then Irish band Fight Like Apes’ latest single, ‘Pretty Keen on Centrefolds’, is contender for your, frankly, odd and random wonderings. Like a great bag of certain confectionery, ‘Pretty Keen on Centrefolds’ is superbly pop rocky, with a good dash of punk to top it off.
Synthy keyboards carry an awesome bassline across the track, itself an amalgam of all things electronic and rock. While, musically, the song is primarily electronic, vocalist MayKay brings a rock edge to it, almost sounding like an Irish Debbie Harry or a metallic version of Karen O.
“When were they/When was I born”, a question asked throughout the track, plays into the song’s – and the band’s – undefinability within the increasingly vague indie rock spectrum, something that makes Fight Like Apes particularly interesting and refreshing to listen to.
Fantastically upbeat and dance-in-your-bedroom fun, this single highlights a lighter, poppier side to a band whose previous tracks include ‘Pull Off Your Arms and Let’s Play In your Blood’, and ‘Digifucker’, obviously aimed at the under-13 demographic; and although previous excursions with the band have been great, this different direction is a more radio-friendly venture, that will appeal to fans both old and new.
Expect the self-titled new album, out on 18 May, to be a party-inducing splatter of cartoony-punk, eclectic electronics and some sweet pop vibes.
‘Pretty Keen On Centrefolds’ is out on Alcopop! Records on 18 May