Like fellow slightly off-the-wall scousers, The Coral and The Last Gambados, The Sneaky Nixons’ sound is cheeky, punky and pleasingly rough around the edges. That said, their production quality, like the acts mentioned above, is of the highest standard.
The dramatic quartet, who incorporate a number of objects and instruments into the mix, describe themselves as “an angry, semi-political, semi-religious, part feminist, sloppy activist group who play riotous, steam train guitar music” and, having already toured Berlin, Amsterdam, Hamburg and Rotterdam, they are beginning to make their music heard.
Meaning “pleasure derived from the misfortune of others,” “Schadenfreude” has, as one might expect, an appropriately bizarre video to go with its head-scratching title. Beginning with a view of a carousel, we then cut to the band members seated first in a car and then on horseback wearing a combination of disguises.
The song has a pulsating staccato riff and a powerfully whiny lead vocal performance reminiscent of the best bands to come out of the north of England in the 1990s. The screen then becomes drenched in psychedelic colours as the horses on the carousel start going around backwards.
The atmosphere changes abruptly when the vocals, without warning, come through a megaphone. The video effect where the singer becomes a big blur is also impressive. Melody-wise, it’s pleasing, if a little repetitive. The lyrics are cleverly written and the uncomplicated guitar solo perfectly fits the track.
I quite liked this song with its punchy guitar and vocals. The modern psychedelia displayed in the video was a joy to watch too. At two minutes and forty seconds it is the ideal length, as if it were any longer it would probably start to get boring.
“Schadenfreude” is out now.
For more information on The Sneaky Nixons, visit their official Facebook page.
