Post-punk has been around for decades though it’s only continuing to gain more traction in the world of rock, and the band Shame is shooting out in front at the start of the new year. The band has released their second album titled Drunk Tank Pink and it’s already starting to get people’s attention. The sophomore album comes off the back of a fairly successful debut in 2018 which led to a tour with plenty of sold out venues, record deals, and a rapidly growing fan base in the U.K. and beyond. Shame paints a more mature picture of themselves in this new track list, totaling out to just north of a forty minute listen.
Drunk Tank Pink corrects what falls short from their original album Songs of Praise whilst also elevating them onto higher planes of enlightenment.
Drunk Tank Pink corrects what falls short from their original album Songs of Praise whilst also elevating them onto higher planes of enlightenment. The eleven track album culminates what it means to be human, have or lack purpose, the anxiety of the youth of today, and an exploration of self-worth that is often grappled with day to day. Front man Charlie Steen and the band frantically and aggressively commentate on these ideas in a manner that’s high octane and stylish enough to dance to, but that also has enough to layers to be analyzed on a heavier or more intimate level. Much of the album is clearly influenced by the negative experiences that have plagued the planet in 2020, each person suffering in their own ways. Drunk Tank Pink is their way of showing that, they too, have had to face their own struggles.
The production of the album is top-level with all of the songs coming through concisely from the vocals to the instruments. Everything is balanced, no one component outweighing another. Most of the songs have some similarity in their delivery, as that’s the style of the band. It’s an anxious album, the band playing as if it’s their last chance ever to say what they need to say. There is solidity in the lyricism, though sometimes it might take more than one listen to find it on certain songs. The guitars sound panicked, the drums feel desperate, Steen’s vocals are controlled yet ‘off the leash’, with the bass holding everything together as best as possible. This may be read as a negative, but it’s actually a positive. There’s a disorderly nature to the way Drunk Tank Pink comes across, but it doesn’t feel forced and it is probably presented this way intentionally.
Drunk Tank Pink is somewhat like what an elderly parent would describe as ‘angry music’. There’s some truth to this, but mostly only in sound. Still, it’s not a stretch to assume as much. 2020 has been tough for many people in more ways than one, and with only being a few weeks into 2021, this album is a more than appropriate way to air grievances that have been built up so much that everyone is just ready to burst. The experience is there, waiting to be had on Spotify or YouTube.
