Dublin noisemakers Gilla Band haven't been making a lot of noise lately. The band's most recent album Most Normal came out four years ago. Since then, Gilla Band's members have been pursuing other things, like guitarist Alan Duggan Borges' experimental electronic project the Null Club. Back in May, Gilla Band finally returned with the explosive, twisty single "Giraffe." That's the kind of song that you release when you're getting ready to announce an album, and that album has now been announced.
This fall, Gilla Band will release their new LP Pugnello. Bassist Daniel Fox recorded and mixed the record. Gilla Band's new single "Placeholder" goes deep into the thumping, caterwauling quasi-industrial direction that "Giraffe" hinted at. As it turns out, their scratchy freakouts pair well with booming electronic beats. Here's what frontman Dara Kiely says about the new song:
On this track, I try to analyze my mental quirks by exploring my comfort distractions. Reverting to childhood nostalgia as an escape. The memories seeping into my day-to-day adult life. Representing personal mental health behaviors via outdated pop culture such as the anxious tension set by Davina McCall’s silence when announcing a Big Brother eviction, or the fight or flight that Harold Lloyd surely experienced when holding on to a clock for dear life, and all for our entertainment.
I mention Power Rangers at the end of this. It was another comfort vice. They were a huge thing for me as a child. I remember I was at some sort of Christian summer camp when I was about six and was asked what I want to be when I grow up. I said "a Power Ranger." I was laughed at and was told the shocking truth that they didn’t exist and it is not a profession worth pursuing. I’ve never forgiven them for that.
"I’m injecting a lethal dose of nothing. I’m blaring a dangerous amount of Coldplay” …. True story.
Below, check out the Cuan Roche-directed "Placeholder" video and the Pugnello tracklist.
TRACKLIST:
01 "The Angelus"
02 "Placeholder"
03 "Alogia"
04 "Three Hands Clapping"
05 "Jacobsons"
06 "The Megazord"
07 "Computer Sadness"
08 "Giraffe"
09 "Crisp Pop"
10 "The Gallop"
Pugnello is out 9/25 on Rough Trade. Pre-order it here.
