Rippling with muscular, spidery bass work and a slippery groove, Holly Head’s latest single on AKOUSTIK ANARKHY – ‘I’ve Had Want’ – is big and euphoric, blowing hot and cool like a summer’s breeze. It’s indie optimism charged with a politicised grit that’s always, and forever, keeping it real.
Co-written by the band’s former lead guitarist, now Westside Cowboy drummer, Paddy Murphy, it’s more than just personal alliance, or the city of Manchester, binding Holly Head with not just Westside Cowboy – but contemporaries like Martial Arts, Wyatt or Mleko. It’s that shared expression of sweat and graft, of ‘heart-on-sleeve’ defiance, and a ‘triumph against adversity’ optimism. It’s that collective endeavour that’s seeking to redefine what it means to be a Manchester band.
Regulars at the charity fundraiser ‘No Band Is An Island’, which has become a lynchpin for the current Manchester Scene, and swelled up with an infectious belief that they can change the world, it’s important to say in Holly Head’s case too that, authenticity and communal spirit aside, they rock. I’ve seen the moshes.
Speaking about the track, singer and lyricist Joe says, earnestly, “It can take a heavy toll on your mental health to process all the negative emotions we feel about the inequality and suffering we see around the world.Our anger shouldn’t be repressed though, and we still feel we must continue to tackle the same issues we’ve talked about in the past. The music is different on this track, but it’s still about wealth inequality, racial hate and animal rights to name a few but, this time, it’s through a wider range of emotions than solely anger.”
Photo by Akoustik Anarkhy
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