INTERVIEW: Gaydar

Image by Andi Talbot

Dirt punk queers Gaydar are gearing up to launch their anarchic, highly anticipated EP Don’t Mention The War. Renowned for their live shows full of chaos and kissing, Gaydar are inspired by the likes of Soft Play, IDLES and Amyl and the Sniffers. They have an incredibly raw, face-melting, grungy sound, self-described as “Radgie”, “Slay”, “A lot of shouting. Danceable but also dirt.”

Made up of guitarist, vocalist and “full time twerker” Riley, drummer and “opera singer in the band” Rachel, and bassist and “backing shouty stuff” Mel, the origins of Gaydar are just what you’d imagine: “We found Mel in a bin outside Wetherspoons,” explains Rachel. “Nah wasn’t Wetherspoons… I’ve got class!” protests Mel. Riley and Rachel had known each other from previous music collaborations, but then met Mel through work, where they bonded over celebrating gender-affirming healthcare. “United by sexiness,” confirms Riley. 

Don’t Talk About The War is a fireball of an EP; politically-edged, loud, high-energy and packed with explosive riffs, fuelled by rage and stuffed with in-your-face lyrics. I was blown away by the massive noise this unforgiving EP provides, never letting up, refusing to give in. 

Opening track War Whore belts out fury at the Gaza genocide. Mel explains: “We’re a political band and we want to talk about political issues.” Riley adds: “We wanted to make sure it was right before we threw it out there because we felt so strongly about it.”

We’re a political band and we want to talk about political issues

Next up is one of the greatest song titles ever, Jan Got Her Tits Done In Turkey, in which Rachel explains a wild story of a friend. “She went to get her mammary glands done in Turkey, and they said they’re going to remove some fat from her back, and put her under, and then they stole her kidney! She was rushed to hospital and they were like… well your kidney’s gone. Massive mammary glands though.” 

Aquarius is “about misogyny and gatekeeping in the music industry. It’s another radgie tune with a dirty riff and some powerful messages in there”, while final track Sweating Like A Bitch is a musical maelstrom on anxiety. “It’s quite stripped-down lyrically, it’s got a doomy breakdown in the middle.” And it also has an exciting music video in the making. “It’s just us being ourselves at our core.”

It’s clear that Gaydar love using their platform to voice things that matter to them, and we discussed what the music industry could be doing to better support queer voices. Mel explains: “A lot of the time it’s going to be straight white men who are dealing with this sort of stuff, and whether it’s implicitly or explicitly, you’re always going to have these biases for people who look like you or seem like you. It’s just about getting more promoters who are queer or trans, getting more people in record labels, in every sort of position.” Riley adds: “When we’re putting on shows we collaborate with other queer people, not even just in music either, in art and stuff like that. It’s just coming together really.”

Things are looking super exciting for Gaydar. “The more time goes on we’re just getting to play with really cool people, and going to some cool places,” Riley explains. “We just love it so much, and it’s just like what’s next?”

Gaydar release Don’t Mention The War on 1^st November.