EP Kicking Goals // ARTIST Hammers
Breathing new life into the revered Aussie pub rock trope, Northern Rivers quartet Hammers gear up to unleash a brand new EP, with Kicking Goals ready to lash your ears then take you out for a beer or five when it drops this Friday August 21.
Following firmly from the raucous riffs and spitfire rock and roll doled out on the group's debut EP Homeblokes back in 2018, the 2020 iteration of Northern Rivers rockers Hammers is a take-no-prisoners cacophony that equally embraces sturdy songwriting with a tongue-in-cheek appeal across a diverse buffet of sonic influences. And amid the musical graveyard of the COVID-19 pandemic, Hammers sit firmly armed and ready to fly the flag for some good old fashioned Aussie rock and roll with their sophomore EP Kicking Goals due out August 21 - but without sacrificing the trademark larrikin antics coded into the band's DNA.
Kicking off Kicking Goals (don't @ me, it works), the Hammers lads immediately lurch out with the rowdy Suze packed full of punk tinges, bulky basslines and the tale of the badass "Suze" lead firmly by the rollicking rasp of lead vocalist Leigh 'Fish' Downling. Up next, the gravelled grooves of Silly Sausage oscillate between blazing alt rock and true-blue Aussie storytelling - think Russell Coight fronting The Butterfly Effect in the early years, with a side of blistering guitars.
GUILTY PLEASURES (HAMMERS)
Flitting between stoner rock, metal antics and tantalising punk flourishes, Hammers wreak beautiful havoc throughout the remainder of the EP, from the enigmatic rager that is Cracker Night to the dangerously dance-inducing When Kings Collide. And while Hammers may feverishly present a "jokey" blast alongside their tunes, with each layer unfurled on the EP it becomes apparent just how much effort Hammers put into sustaining the increasingly lost art of straight up rock and roll into their repertoire. From the mutinous breakdown closing out When Kings Collide to the jaunty brutality of Guilty Pleasures and the surprisingly stirring stylings of closing track Last Breath, Hammers ultimately close out striking a potent balance between rambunctious swagger and substance.
For Aussie fans of the rockier persuasion, the Hammers name is by no means a new one on the radar, and the group's ever-growing resume has found them in-demand on the live music circuit for quite some time now. And while there's an undeniable wallop of heaving riffs and bold tales permeating the Hammers brand, perhaps the most intriguing element to the overall picture is the quartet's ability to hark back to some of the greats of true-blue Aussie pub and punk rock without drowning their craft in imitation. Alongside the cheek and the sonic debauchery, Hammers are a group who will rock your socks off, and Kicking Goals is a polished riot that'll delight and surprise (and inadvertently have you reaching for a tinnie or two).
HAMMERS WILL UNLEASH THEIR NEW EP KICKING GOALS FRIDAY 21ST AUGUST, FOR MORE INFO HEAD HERE.
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BY TIANA SPETER