We are ILL

Well now, what do we have here? Why it’s a five piece band from Manchester. Fear not, this isn’t your Madchester cobblers; this is a fuzzy, warbled punk rock debut full length from all-female band ILL, released by the increasingly brilliant Box Records.

Right off the bat, yes there is of course direct comparisons to other “females in punk” outfits such as The Slits or The Raincoats. Quite right and virtuous comparisons, may I add. But importantly there is more to ILL.

Yes, the vocals are shouty and tumultuous, the band are all competing for vocals while the instruments themselves compete against one other. At times a glorious dog fight. Yet there is enough restraint on We Are ILL; melody is still chief priority instead of shock or outright fury – It isn’t punk for punk’s sake. It is intelligent, creative, fun and pleasurably danceable – often found wanting in straight-up punk.

The themes on We Are ILL appear to be coming from all angles; the personal, the political, the funny, the surreal and any combination of the above, often in direct yet amusing deliveries. Take ‘Hysteria’, the album-closing standout track that appears to take umbrage with societies expectations of women as child bearers, “This is what God wants/this is your purpose/I know what God wants/control of your cervix” goes one such line. Brilliant.

Released: May 2018
Cat: BOXREC27
Label: Box Records

Audio

Tracklist

1. ILL Song
2. Space Dick
3. Stuck On A Loop
4. Bears
5. Bus Shelter
6. I Am The Meat
7. Slithering Lizards
8. Power
9. Hysteria