“Surprise, surprise, she lit my cigarette with her eyes” runs the memorable chorus refrain of ‘Cigarettes’, an unconventional portrait of boy-meets-girl romance by upcoming London five-piece Black Calavera. This fast-flowing three-minutes-thirty of cinematic garage-rock floors the listener with its punchy verse riffs before digging into heavier roots to elevate that catchy chorus, delivered with characteristic brashness by singer Charlie Bungay, who in part recalls Siouxsie Sioux, in part Steena Tweeddale, but is all delicious attitude and drawl. Put together, ’Cigarettes’ is a track that oozes wicked swagger, a fierce statement from a band who are nailed-on alt-rock luminaries in-waiting

‘Cigarettes’ was recorded at west London’s RYP Recordings in February 2019, produced by Michael Smith (Anteros, Honey Lung, Weird Milk).

Originally forming as a trio in the southwest port town of Weymouth, where they honed their nascent sound in a friend’s nan’s garage, Charlie Bungay (vocals), Jazz Haddlesey (guitar) and Alex Butcher (bass) were drawn, like so many before them, to the more-robust musical infrastructure and opportunities on offer in the English capital. Of the rewards to be found there, the most immediate for Black Calavera was the presence of Matyas Csonka (guitar/keys) and Darren Maddox (drums), who were welcomed into the band in 2018 and added precisely what was needed to perfect a sharp and powerful alt-rock output.

Months of hard work in the rehearsal studio led to a series of enthusiastically received shows at iconic London grassroots venues including The Monarch, The Islington, Paper Dress Vintage and The Finsbury, before debut single ‘Generation’ was released in May 2019, winning praise for its “bold and bolstering indie-rock” and “twisted riffs and slick lyrics”. Follow up ‘Cigarettes’ is a further step forward for these thrilling purveyors of razor-edged garage rock, who may be relatively new to the London scene but will soon have fans flocking to venues well beyond it.  

LInks
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