By Oliver Shasha
Hailing from Gerringong in the New South Wales province of Australia, four piece rock outfit The Bungalows may be two albums deep, but new single ‘Planet Earth’ makes a strong case to suggest that they’ve still got plenty more to offer. With the latter of their two albums released way back in 2011, the now eight years of inactivity has given them time to manufacture a more assertive and cultivated sonic profile. During previous records the band flirted with a myriad of styles, and although they strictly remained within the wider depths of modern rock, the prevailing themes of surf, indie, garage and psychedelia left at times an ambiguous or confused impression on the band. Fortunately the new single ‘Planet Earth’ is a lot easier to digest.
A matured consolidation of previous styles, ‘Planet Earth’ combines a vibrant but aggressive drum sound, complimented with progressive guitar chords that dominate the mix and are a real authority leading the song in every new direction. The quirky melodic and lyrical style are in many ways similar to Chicago garage rockers Twin Peaks, employing a similar juxtaposition between seemingly serious music with subtleties of facetiousness and sarcasm, embedded within the lyrical prose.
Indulging in their “laid back South Coast attitude”, the cinematic surroundings of Gerringong have not only laid the foundation for a more established music character, but also towards refining their self proclaimed mantra, which focuses on the more organic enjoyment of the band lifestyle…”enjoying the rock‘ n ‘roll fun, balanced with the peace of mind that a dreamy coastal town can offer”.
It’s fair to say that The Bungalows mindset when approaching the writing process is quite the anomaly amongst the music establishment. The latter lyrics of the final chorus “you’re feeling right at home, just leave now let me go” even inadvertently criticises the music industry’s inherent obsession with seriousness and perfection, posing the question, what’s the issue with creating for anything other than enjoyment? If you’re looking for the answer, i’d definitely suggest keeping an eye out for the next movements of The Bungalows, scheduled to release their third and most promising album to date this coming August.
Listen to ‘Planet Earth’ here:
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