The opening title track of Stability by new Derry band The Wood Burning Savages launches into life with a massive bubbling bass line and singer Paul Connolly blurting out the words "security" and "stability". Connolly brilliantly sums up their debut album as "a collection of songs about a working class furious at years of empty promises from billionaire Tory MPs who have no insight into everyday life".
The Wood Burning Savages channel elements of Manic Street Preachers, Future of The Left, Mansun and Queens of the Stone Age to forge their own singular musical and lyrical vision that delves into the nitty-gritty of everyday life and modern frustrations. I Don't Know Why I Do it to Myself specifically deals with the suicide rate in Derry, which is one of the highest in western Europe.
The Wood Burning Savages are also terrific musicians who deftly create an accessible hard rock sound on their self-released debut. Any independent or major label worth its salt really needs to start paying close attention, as new bands rarely emerge as fully realised, ambitious and insightful as this.
In tapping into their hometown’s proud rebel roots, The Wood Burning Savages are undeniably one of the most intelligent and articulate new Irish bands to come along in quite some time.
