Fast rising Liverpool rockers The Mysterines have released their highly anticipated debut album ‘Reeling’. They have also shared the high octane music video for guttural powerhouse ‘Life’s A Bitch’ watch below.
‘Reeling’ is seeing stellar reviews across the board for it’s compelling lyricism, brooding dynamic soundscapes with an impressive maturity. The Line of Best Fit’s 8/10 review said The Mysterines “draw you in with their seething words…mountainous rock tones…and humoured musings on life’s painful inevitabilities over thirteen glorious tracks”, with DIY commenting “their knack for melody is one of their greatest strengths, particularly when combined with frontwoman Lia Metcalfe’s husky tones”. NME declared ‘Reeling’ an “electrifying debut album” in their 4* review, comparing the powerful guitar ballad ‘On The Run’ to “a Celebrity Skin era Hole classic”, meanwhile The Telegraph commented “The Mysterines’ default setting is fast and furious garage punk-rock to which Metcalfe adds a goth grandeur with doomy lyrics and a quality of brazen glee at the rebellious posturing of songs with statement titles.”
We spoke to Lia from The Mysterines, you can watch the interview here.
The Mysterines will be celebrating the release of their debut album with a string of UK in store and headline shows this month, with Rough Trade East today (11th March), culminating at London’s Electric Ballroom and Liverpool’s Invisible Wind Factory in April. Tickets here.
The Mysterines are a true force to be reckoned with. Barely out of their teens, they completely sold out both their 2020 and 2021 headline tours, were selected as one of Amazon Music UK’s Ones To Watch 2022, have supported Royal Blood, The Amazons and Sea Girls on tour, as well as headlined the BBC Introducing Stage at Reading and Leeds. Their fans include Steve Lamacq, Jack Saunders, Clara Amfo, Dan P Carter and Huw Stephens, alongside tastemakers NME, Independent, Metro, MOJO, DIY, Dork, Upset, CLASH and Gigwise.
The Mysterines debut album ‘Reeling’ was made under the watchful eye of acclaimed producer Catherine Marks (Wolf Alice, The Big Moon, PJ Harvey) over three weeks in between lockdowns at Assault & Battery studios in London, recorded live to capture the intensity of the songs. “It’s a pretty ambiguous title for most people, but for me ‘Reeling’ sums up every emotion of the album in just one word,” says Lia. “It was the hardest thing I’ve ever had to do,” she explains.
Grief, self-destruction and heartache run heavy through the record, but all are brought together by the blackest of humour. The dirty desert blues of ‘Life’s A Bitch’ was actually meant to be the first single, “but it turns out I say ‘bitch’ too much on it,” chuckles Lia. Other tracks run the gamut from the grunged-up country of ‘Old Friends, Die Hard’ to the giddy, free-falling ‘On The Run’, Lia’s unique take on the tale of the teenage runaways in Terrence Mallick’s iconic Badlands. Then there’s the creepy, cultish ‘Under Your Skin’, which is The Doors by way of The Manson Family and the Stooges-esque ‘The Bad Thing’, of which Lia says: “It’s the most fun to play, and the words I find really funny as well – I’m digging someone up from the grave that I used to love.”
