Narc. Magazine Online
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The tightly-wound punk funk outfit prepare to release their new album
Formed in Newcastle in 2021, Charts And Graphs are a tightly-wound punk funk outfit featuring singing guitarist Dan Greener, bassist Ross Mackay and Hugh Whitby on drums (for the purposes of this recording, as the band recently announced Whitby has left the band). Their previous album No Dive Bombing Or Heavy Petting garnered critical praise and the group have been featured on BBC Introducing. The trio cite post-punk touchstones Talking Heads, Devo and Gang of Four as key influences, along with more recent acts LCD Soundsystem and Snapped Ankles.
The opening track, Modern Trends, on new album Poltergeist II really ought to be all over BBC 6Music, with its chiming central guitar motif recalling Tom Verlaine’s early solo work. New Choices mines early Talking Heads to great effect, while House Music nods to early rap and post-punk revivalists The Rapture. Album centrepiece There Be Monsters is the kind of infectious dance punk that would have filled the floor of local indie discos in the mid-80s, bringing to mind cult Edinburgh post-punk pioneers, Boots For Dancing. Dan Greener’s choppy guitar and quirky, observational lyrics may be the focal point of Charts And Graphs, but with Mackay and Whitby keeping the bass and drums tight, uncluttered and understated, the trio’s playing is perfectly simpatico over the course of this fat-free 10 track album.
