Shitdisco

The Truth:

“John Peel, were he alive today, would fade out gently with, ‘..the kids are still mental.’ Rejoice.” The Guardian

Kingdom Of Fear is the debut album from Glasgow’s disco kings Shitdisco. Building on a solid reputation as the ultimate dance-punk party band, the album includes Shitdisco’s two singles to date – Disco Blood and Reactor Party – and eight stomping new tunes. Produced by ex-Clor man Luke Smith, Kingdom Of Fear is a breakneck, BPM-busting monster of an album. It’s pop music you can dance to and disco music you can shout along to. “We were thinking about the dynamics of pop music while we were making it,” says co-frontman Joe. “We’re aiming to be as pop as a band called Shitdisco can be.”

Referencing punk funk, old school disco and classic house motifs, the album is a party on plastic. I Know Kung Fu is stupidly addictive, Disco Blood is a homage to the past heroes of disco, even incorporating the band’s own take on the laser sounds from Kelly Marie’s Feels Like I’m In Love. Elsewhere, Fear Of The Future tackles Big Brother syndrome, complete with suitably panic-stricken vocals, while Another nods to the band’s addictive personalities (“another, and another, and another”).

‘Another’ was the band’s buzzword during their early days, when the four art school students transformed a Glasgow tenement flat into a notorious late-night party venue. Another party, another late night, another gig, another of those, please. The wild success of Shitdisco’s own Shit Disco lasted for three years, during which time the band built up a reputation for playing anywhere there was a party. And if there was no party, they’d bring their own. They played gigs in disused railway tunnels, squats, and in the home of anyone who could accommodate them – an offer which still stands, extending even to their Myspace ‘friends’. The glory days, almost inevitably, ended with Darren’s eviction and the threat of a £10,000 lawsuit. The band responded by buying a cheap caravan off eBay, which now serves as Darren’s home and their latest party venue.

Lately, they’ve been touring more conventional venues. Last autumns NME tour with Klaxons was a sell out success and they’ve gone down a storm in Europe and bringing the party atmosphere with them wherever they play, from Popkomm in Berlin to Eurosonic in Holland and in exotic locales such as Bangkok and Istanbul. Witness Shitdisco rocking the dancefloor for yourself at the following shows with The Rapture and before that at Fierce Panda’s 13th Birthday Party at Electrowerkz on 23rd February.

Glasgow-based Shitdisco was formed in early 2004 by Joel Stone (bass), Joe Reeves (guitar and vocals), Jan Lee (keyboard), and Darren Cullen (drums and cutlery). Very much informed by modern-day dance-punk sounds as well as the post-punk sounds of their forefathers, the group quietly gained a loyal following and their sporadic gigs earned them a reputation for a live show not to be missed. Their debut recording, Disco Blood, was released on Fierce Panda in 2005. Their follow-up single, "Reactor Party," was released in October 2006. ~ Rob Theakston, All Music Guide