Geordie Greep - The New Sound

While ‘The New Sound’ is primarily alternative pop, significant bossa nova and samba influences run throughout. The musical theatre-infused ‘Holy Holy’, the swooning croon of ‘If You Are But a Dream’, and the prog-rock outro of ‘Blues’ make for a record with 100-turns-a-minute that consistently defies expectations. Lyrically, too, Geordie Greep shapeshifts into an assortment of grotesque characters. While the stalkerish narrator in ‘As If Waltz’ dreams of marrying a sex worker, ‘Holy Holy’ recounts a meticulously organised, self-satisfying “chance” encounter. Meanwhile, in ‘Motorbike,’ the speaker wistfully fantasises about shooting their partner before riding a “brand new V-Max engine.” Absolutely bonkers and utterly brilliant, if black midi’s indefinite hiatus was the high price for ‘The New Sound’, then it was a price worth paying.