Review | Delaire, The Liar – Not Punk Enough

Rating: 10/10

By Luigi Sibona

Delaire, The Liar, a two-piece from London, have burst onto the scene with show-stealing statement of intent, ‘Not Punk Enough’. This is undoubtedly one of the best debut EP’s to be released by a band in a long time, boasting songwriting of the very highest calibre.

Weighing in at a lean five tracks, the emotional gymnastics on display here over a mere 14 minutes is something to behold. The lyrics are so deftly written and soul-searingly honest it takes a few spins just to get a handle on all the ways Delaire are yanking on your feel chords.

This is the single best vocal performance I’ve heard this year. The way lines drive and surge is unfathomably affecting. The intuition on lines like “My hands never get clean, that kind of guilt stains” on the incredible lead single, ‘Guilt & Recourse’, hits like a sledgehammer even on the hundredth listen. The songs are so free-flowing and the vocal lines so wildly inventive, it’s hard to work out what should be the main hook when every passage nails itself to the back of your skull.

‘Witch Hunt’ is a relatively straight-up melodic punk number with a razor-sharp, instantaneous hook that packs so much pent-up angst and emotionality it smacks as just another highlight. Ending on the jaw dropping ‘Opulence (Has Taken Lives)’, one of the best songs of the year, you’re left genuinely breathless and without a seconds doubt about diving right back in. With sharp lyrical turns of phrase – “As I collected like rainfall, bending in the middle” is a t-shirt-tugger, singalong like no man’s business – and the layered, dynamic instrumentation ‘Opulence’ drives home everything that’s so wonderful about Delaire. By the time that last “It’ll get you killed” rings out you’re left genuinely staggered and emotionally crippled.

This is emo in its truest form; emotionally devastating, beautifully delicate with songs that soar the way only the purest music can do. And this is just their first EP! We are monumentally excited from what these guys have to come, expect massive things!

Listen to the single ‘Guilt & Recourse here: