New Music | DEADLETTER - Madge’s Declaration

George Ward

Freelance journalist based in Bristol. Can be found at the Grain Barge, Rough Trade or in his tiny basement bedroom writing for CLUNK.

Ahead of their upcoming debut EP Heat! , DEADLETTER give us ‘Madge’s Declaration’, another dark post-punk tune that’s brimming with character

While the band are still on an EU Arena tour with Placebo, South-London post-punk group DEADLETTER drop another teaser from their upcoming debut EP. DEADLETTER are known for their dreary (but by no means uninteresting) landscapes, reflective lyrics and tight instrumentation.

This track offers all of these elements while showing the band in a slightly more lively mood than their last pessimistic single ‘Weights’. The bass is playful, dancing around underneath the whole track and giving it a real character. The guitars are minimal but appear in thrashes when necessary to give the track some edge. The drums are predictably tight and altogether, these elements provide a solid backdrop for Zac Lawrence’s brilliant performance and lyricism.

The lyrics here are still fairly pessimistic but are playful enough to make you smile. The brilliant line “I’ve got shoes, but no soul, I’ve got a lovely pair of shoes but no soul” is catchy and memorable and perfectly sums up the attitude of the band.

It’s not every day you get a post-punk band who reference Madonna’s ‘Material Girl’ and this, with the fun instrumentation, should convince you that DEADLETTER, while brilliant at building their gloomy atmospheres, aren’t taking themselves too seriously.

Debut EP ‘Heat!’ is out on 18th November via SO Recordings.

Listen/watch ‘Madge’s Declaration’ here: