Words: ROBIN MUMFORD
Ah, the rule of three. From an early age, everything seems to be taught around the number three. From the way we write sentences and paragraphs to the way we work out a maths equation, it’s all done in three steps. And for some of us that misbehaved, we’d always get three warnings, but that’s beside the point.
I say all of this because Redeemers’ debut single ‘Venue Affair’ got me thinking…
When I started my university journey as a student journalist, I was taught from day dot about how every story can be interpreted in three ways. For every article I write, I should be able to pick three different angles to choose from.
And honestly, during my time as a music writer, I’ve often found it difficult to find three things to say about a new release that offers a different angle.
Until now…
See, Redeemers are a band that have got their debut single spot on. And out of all the many scrolls of releases I have covered this year, ‘Venue Affair’ is the one that I can go back to my journalism basics and pick three different things to talk about.
In music, it’s easy to pick lyricism, vocalism, and soundscape as the three main talking points. But what Redeemers offer instead is three different segments of their debut single that offer something completely different to the rest.
There are three moments throughout ‘Venue Affair’ that quite literally had me off my seat.
In the opening segments of the track, which is set in and inspired by the legendary Manchester indie-club ‘Venue’, the sheer euphoria that I felt from the progressive tones of the single coming into full-tilt can be counted as my first of three highlights of the track.
Whether it’s a football match, a gig, or anything else, there’s always that feeling of excitement kicking into gear, isn’t there? And the progressive, intensifying beginning that ‘Venue Affair’ catalyses in the opening seconds of the song gives me that anticipatory rise, before shifting up a gear.
That indescribable feeling you get when a venue starts to fill up around you and you start to hear multiple choruses of band-led chants and regional football club chants get underway.
Yeah, that feeling.
Secondly, Redeemer’s unrelenting choruses and driven guitar walls in the bulk of the track is my second memorable jigsaw piece of ‘Venue Affair’. Featuring sweltering riffs, thumping drums, and hungry, authentic, and passionate vocals from charismatic frontman Matty McCallum, the progressive start quickly transcends into a baptism of fire and all-out chaos in the middle section.
The rock and roll elements join forces to bring a sound that echoes to the debut singles from indie music’s heyday such as Oasis’ ‘Supersonic’ and Arctic Monkeys’ ‘I Bet You Look Good On The Dancefloor’.
Redeemers seem to be cut from the same cloth as the finest musicians in British indie folklore.
But in my third and final moment the song changes the production on its head. While everybody listening to the anthem will quickly become accustomed to the raucous, foot-stomping, head-banging rhythms that are prevalent throughout, there is a section in the track that shifts into a new dimension.
Halfway through the single, the verve of the release tilts into a psychedelic, guitar-sliding canticle. Although it only lasts a few moments, it homes in on a talent that the band will no doubt feature more heavily in their upcoming releases.
It is a part in the song that expresses Redeemers’ value in versatility and excites those who wish to wait for the future sounds that the Mancunian rockers will conjure.
And although I chose to pick three highlights worth talking about. It is also worth knowing the band’s intentions behind the song. “I wrote the song with just the image of the place in mind, the thought of that feeling of youthful escapism,” the band’s guitarist and songwriter Eoin Harkin said.
“Once you're down those stairs as you get in, the world above them doesn't exist anymore. For a few hours all those problems you had before are just white noise down there.”
With more songs recorded and ready to be released throughout the rest of the year and a successful support slot with The Rah’s under their belts, Redeemers have lit the torch paper and they are ready to take off with the release of ‘Venue Affair’, their incredible debut single.