Over the last couple of years, Bloods have built a fairly hefty rep as one of Sydney’s hardest-working bands. Their exhausting-just-to-look-at list of live dates, as well as a handful of infectious singles (‘Goodnight’, ‘All The Things You Say Are Wrong’, ‘This Town’) have helped hone them into expert purveyors of tight, no-nonsense garage pop.

‘No Fun’ opens Golden Fang with a punchy call-and-response vocal. The guitar solo powers in to the mix with unhinged lunacy. Don’t let the sugary sweet harmonies and upbeat party vibes fool you, though. Lurking throughout all of these songs is a strong underlying current of angst and menace. The Buzzcocks-esque ‘Into My Arms’ is a fine example of this method of delivery.

The incessant buzzsaw guitar of ‘Bodies’ is the perfect complement to its venomous lyrics. ‘Back To You’ turns the pace down to a slow and sultry level before building up into a cacophony of drums and screams. The swing of the drums and the melody in ‘Hailing Down’ gives the track a slight psychedelic feel that’s emphasised further towards the end with a spacey guitar solo.

‘Language’ rounds things out with a guitar line and dual vocals that are beautifully melancholic. In comparison to the track lengths on the rest of Golden Fang, ‘Language’ is an epic at nearly four minutes. It’s a fine wind-down after the speed and power of its forerunners.

Golden Fang is the result of the trio’s unrelenting work ethic. Much like its namesake City Road Chinese eatery, Bloods’ Golden Fang serves up a delicious assortment of goodies packed full of punch.

4/5 stars

BY MICHAEL HARTT

Golden Fang out now through Shock.

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