Essex trio Bilk fire out incendiary raucous rock ‘n’ roll inspired by alternative sounds from the early days of punk right through to the contemporary indie scene. There’s no concessions to trends or commercial sensibilities: just the raw rush of three men going for broke and inspiring young audiences to forget their troubles in a lunatic release of wild energy. That all-or-nothing intensity has already engaged a devoted cult fanbase, and Bilk’s reputation is set to explode with the release of their second album ‘Essex, Drugs and Rock and Roll’ on January 24th via Scruff of the Neck and news of their biggest ever headline tour.
‘Essex, Drugs and Rock and Roll’ takes us deeper into Bilk’s indie-punk roots, now flavouring their vehement sound with emerging dives into everything from hollered acoustic singalongs into gritty heavyweight blues. Its songs are full of distinctly British experiences that most people experience in their teen and young adult years: love and lust, embarking and occasionally learning from wild misadventures, feeling as if you don’t belong, wanting more from life than the opportunities that arise in small town life, parties and punch-ups, and a fear of a future which looks far from secure. Bilk offers a community in which all of those feelings are respected and acknowledged… and then temporarily forgotten about in a riotous wall of sound.
Frontman Sol Abrahams says, “The album sums up where I’m at in my life at the moment which is everything from being in a band to partying, relationships, love, drugs, sex and a load of stories and experiences I’ve picked up and written about along the way. I think it’s the most exciting thing about in band music right now.”
If you’re new to Bilk, the album’s lead single ‘F Up’ is an engaging introduction. Set to bouncing, indie-pop grooves and a fiery punk hook, Sol’s Essex accent tells the tale of waking up and wondering WTF happened the night before. But hey, life is meant to be lived and there’s something irresistibly thrilling nihilistic about living for the moment. As Sol exclaims with carefree defiance: “Forget all your worries ‘cos today I’m proud to be me… I live my life with no responsibility… I’m a fuck up until the day that I die.”
Sol adds, “I wrote the tune in about three minutes before getting in the studio to record the album and it’s about me living my life as a ‘fuck up’. I’m pretty useless at everything apart from music tbh and the song’s just about living free, not taking life too seriously, having a laugh, being a bit of a fuck up and not giving a shit what people think about it. It’s a banger so go blare it out now and annoy ya neighbours.”
Entirely written by Sol, he and his Bilk bandmates Luke Hare (bass) and Harry Gray (drums) recorded ‘Essex, Drugs and Rock and Roll’ over the course of two weeks at Edge Studios and Silkmill Studios with Andy Gannon (AIKO, The HARA).
Bilk was originally formed by Sol, who grew increasingly frustrated at a revolving door of band members until he discovered that Luke and Harry had the magic combination of attitude, personality and musicianship to make the project come to life. Their shared influences cover all manner of sounds – The Streets, Arctic Monkeys, early Green Day, Nirvana and fellow Essex lads Rat Boy – but being real, raw and relatable, ballsy and bruising have always been their main priorities.
At present, Bilk are a solidly underground proposition but the cult-like dedication of their following is something that will surely connect with much bigger audiences in the near future. Early highlights like ‘Spiked’, ‘Bad News’ and ‘CM2’ as well as their self-titled debut album have propelled them to 20 million streams to date.
While you can’t deny the force of personality from a band who might reference local pubs, ‘Sid & Nancy’, Tesco meal deals, ‘Peep Show’ or getting knocked out the same night as the England football team in their songs, the intensity of their fans is most striking at live shows. The reaction to the band’s London gigs at Omeara, The 100 Club and The Garage is impossible to ignore, each rammed with wide-eyed exuberance and flying crowd-surfers. But while Bilk are underdogs, the reaction to their gigs has led to opportunities on far bigger stages too with festival sets at Reading, Leeds, SXSW, The Great Escape and Louis Tomlinson’s Away From Home. They were even famously banned from Rough Trade when an in-store descended into chaos.
‘Essex, Drugs and Rock and Roll’ is available to pre-order HERE. Formats include limited signed red vinyl, black vinyl and CD.
Having recently headlined the Scruff of the Neck stage at Y NOT? and played the Leeds Festival for the third year running, Bilk have confirmed details of their biggest ever headline tour. Tickets for the shows, listed below, go on sale HERE from ADD TIME/DATE.
FEBRUARY
5th – Bristol, Thekla
6th – Cardiff, The Globe
7th – London, Electric Ballroom
13th – Manchester, Academy 2
14th – Leeds, Brudenell Social Club
15th – Newcastle, Northumbria Students Union
16th – Glasgow, SWG3 Warehouse
19th – Nottingham, Rescue Rooms
20th – Norwich, Arts Centre
21st – Birmingham, O2 Academy 2
22nd – Southampton, Engine Shed
MARCH
3rd – Paris, La Boule Noire
4th – Antwerp, Kavka Oudaan
5th – Rotterdam, Rotown
7th – Copenhagen, Ideal Bar @ Vega
8th – Hamburg, Hebebuhne
9th – Berlin, Privatclub
11th – Warsaw, Klub Hydrozagadka
12th – Krakow, Klub Gwarek
13th – Prague, Café V lese
14th – Vienna, Chelsea
15th – Munich, Milla
16th – Milan, Circolo Magnolia
26th – Cork, Winthrop Avenue
27th – Galway, Roisin Dubh
28th – Belfast, Oh Yeah Music Centre
29th – Dublin, The Workman’s Club
