The Brighton outfit bring a smile and a sense of weirdness to their brass-fed and punk-studded left-field indie.
Words: Karl Johnson | Photo: Katie Allen
Brighton seven-piece KEG are seemingly a fun-loving bunch. Their frenzied debut single – out on Alcopop! Records – is entitled Heyshaw and documents vocalist Albert Haddenham’s family travels with the RAF. With a pinch of salt in one hand and a playful sense of instrumentation in the other, KEG offer uniquely erratic big band fun – bringing a smile and a sense of weirdness to their brass-fed and punk-studded left-field indie. While the likes of Squid or BCNR induce anxiety in their music using the full power of their large set ups, KEG seem hell-bent on just having fun – I know who I’d hire as my wedding band.
Frontman Albert Haddenham states, “The first tune we wrote as Keg is a cheeky ditty about my mum’s family, growing up on Heyshaw farm in the Yorkshire dales and various RAF camps around the world, from Nidderdale to Kuwait, Kuala Lumpur to Driffield, Whippets to Frankfurters. The culture clash must have been quite stark. Musically the track was written at the height of our collective Devo frenzy, we are indebted to our Ohio forebears.”
At any moment you get the feeling that KEG‘s experimental synthesizer parts, trombone-heavy rattle or penetrating guitar sound may fall flat on it’s face – seemingly grounded only by it’s beautifully rigid and high-tempo drumming – but it doesn’t, it soars dynamically into one of the hardest-hitting debut singles of 2021. Keep an eye out for their debut EP Assembly in the Autumn.
hardofhearingmagazine.com 