Bad Nerves - New Shapes
8Overall Score
Lyrics7
Vocals8
Musicianship8
Emotion8
Consistency9

Bad Nerves, New Shapes
Killing Moon

“No intros, no outros, no fucking around!” is the Bad Nerves motto, and they deliver yet again with latest cut from their explosive self-titled debut album: New Shapes. The single hits in at just 1.44, and it’s truly a force to be reckoned with: Bad Nerves have cut the fat, polished the edges, and spat out a tune that’s pure force start to finish.

As with any Bad Nerves tune, New Shapes refuses to slow down to less than what feels like 300bpm, and refuses to feature a single line that isn’t immediately begging to be sang along to. Their pace might be relentless, and they might not let us pause at any point, but Bad Nerves still manage to make New Shapes feel delightfully lighthearted. Crisply syncopated guitar riffs keep the song grounded, while Bobby Nerves’ surf-punk-via-East-London vocals toss the vibes up in the air then bat them around like a crowdsurfer atop a raucous crowd.

Fast and furious is the name of the game when it comes to all Bad Nerves tracks, and all the teasers of their album have fit the bill – Electric 88 and Baby Drummer are definitely rapid-fire bangers, but Palace at nearly three minutes is practically a ballad. Jokes, obviously – Palace slows it down 10% to allow for cartwheeling instrumentals and soaring vocal lines to breeze by and punch harder. With just over a week till release, Bad Nerves have promised a record that totally hits, and it certainly looks like it’s going to.

Bad Nerves is out November 20th.