Loom like making a noise. Having gained themselves a reputation for their ferocious live shows, the Leamington Spa-based three-piece make no bones that aggression is at the heart of everything they do. Having released a scattershot collection of EPs and singles since 2012, after two years of careful crafting, the trio have finally unveiled their debut, self-titled album. Combining elements of delicious grungy scuzz, squalling art rock and more than a little Kurt Cobain in frontman Tarik Badwin’s strained vocals, it turns out that Loom wasn’t only with the wait, but has cemented its place as one of the most promising debut releases of 2017.
Below, we catch up with the band on the 10 records which most inspired their glorious noise.
Pixies - Doolittle
Pixies are one of the best bands of all time – the dynamic between the four of them is perfect. Joey Santiago is a massive influence on our guitar sound. Every Pixies record is great but, for us, Doolittle is the pinnacle. For one thing, it’s impossible to leave out an album with Gouge Away on.
Uncle Acid & The Deadbeats - Blood Lust
We were lucky enough to play a show in Brighton with Uncle Acid a few years ago (alongside the impeccably-named Sea Bastard). We listened to this album a lot when we were writing [our] album. The production value is reminiscent of Black Sabbath’s more psychedelic moments, such as Planet Caravan.
The Gun Club - Las Vegas Story
The Gun Club are ridiculously underrated. They were consistently brilliant throughout the ‘80s and have been more influential than most people give them credit for. The record is immersive from start to finish – there is an uncontrived pain in Jeffrey Lee Pierce’s vocals that adds the blues element. Give Up The Sun and Stranger In Our Town are masterpieces.
Sonic Youth - Dirty
Thurston Moore is one of Matt’s heroes and Dirty has a lot of his bangers on it. Sugar Kane and Chapel Hill are so rich instrumentally. You get a sense with every track that they are almost playing with which direction to take next, but the structures remain fluid without becoming self-indulgent.
The Stooges - Raw Power
Not much needs to be said. The Stooges are the seminal punk band and Iggy Pop is obviously number one when it comes to unhinged frontmen. That intensity comes across in the first 10 seconds of Search And Destroy. Raw Power is one of his many classic 8-track albums and this marks the start of David Bowie’s intervention, which you could argue were Iggy’s strongest few years. Having said that, it’s inconceivable that many 70-year-olds could bring out an record as great as Post Pop Depression.
Jesus Lizard - Goat
We cover Seasick on our album. Never has a song been more aptly-named – you actually feel like you’re about to throw up listening to it because of the way it rolls around in your head. The whole album is incredible and another massive influence on our songwriting approach.
Slint - Spiderland
Slint are another amazing band from the Touch And Go roster. Spiderland is one of those few albums that spawned a whole generation of (inferior) copy-cats. The whole album plays around with weird time signatures without sounding disjointed or unlistenable. It’s crazy that they were making such innovative music when they were still at school.
Misfits - Static Age
Static Age has most of our favourite Misfits tracks on. They are another band that we’ve covered a few times - She and Attitude have featured as B-sides on our first few cassette releases. It’s a pretty strange story of how Static Age came about. It was recorded at the end of the 1970s but didn’t get a release until 1996 because of various bust-ups, which meant it was almost forgotten about.
Bad Brains - Bad Brains
There has never been another band like Bad Brains. Not many jazz fusion acts have gone on to make reggae-infused hardcore punk. Their debut album is full of amazing songs – Big Takeover was one of the first songs we played together. That song is probably the reason we’ve gone through so many drummers.
Nick Cave & The Bad Seeds - Let Love In
Nick Cave is a genius. Every album he’s made has had a huge impact. The Birthday Party probably come across as an influence in our sound more than The Bad Seeds, but I don’t think there is another Nick Cave album as consistently brilliant as Let Love In. Jangling Jack and Loverman keep that almost Hammer-horror theme of his first few records but are elevated by the complex instrumental arrangement that underpins everything.
Loom’s self-titled debut album is available now via Silent Cult Records.
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