Murder Club - ‘Night Out’ EP review
Murder Club by Tom Damsell
The south-Wales band, Murder Club, present a bubble-gum grunge Night Out EP influenced by bands such as Hole and Boygenius. Releasing tomorrow 29 March via Venn Records, this EP is a testament the ritual surrounding a night out with the girlies, exploring three separate narratives that convene in the women’s toilets.
After forming in 2020 and trying to make music during lockdown their first release, in February 2022, was ‘Sour Candy’ that explores themes of cat-calling and bad boyfriends. Night Out is an appreciation of going out for drinks having experienced a lockdown that restricted access to socialisation.
The EP starts with ‘Pictures of Myself’, celebrating the most fun but also most stressful part of the night: getting ready. The stress of getting the perfect selfie in commemoration of a night out is unparalleled especially when realising “oh shit I’m late again”.
While on the surface this song’s content might seem stereotypical in the way it speaks of the feminine experience: selfies, high heels and hair, this song is a reclamation of this stigmatisation. Murder Club presents an unapologetically girly song that celebrates these interests rather than as a projection of internalised misogyny in true riot grrrl fashion.
‘Shots!’ moves away from the bedroom into the toilets of a bar. Shedding a light on the unspoken unity that can be found in the unlikely environment of the women’s toilets, this song features spoken word segments and lyrics that will make you chuckle with resonance.
Drummer and vocalist Elisha Djan testifies that "going to the toilets in pairs or groups is a must on a night out," and this song captures that by featuring conversations they’ve heard before on a night out. These segments connect each single together from this ep: the first segment relating to the Pictures of Me and the second segment pre-empting the last song, ‘Crybaby’.
‘Crybaby’ finishes Night Out with a more sombre tone, pulling this EP together after the riot that was ‘Shots!’. This song functions as a consolation for the person crying, rather than the typical name cry-baby being applied to shame someone for showing emotion. This approach demonstrates the empathy and friendship that can be found in the women’s toilets and follows on from the empowering conversation in ‘Shots!’. “I’m in a bloody Wetherspoons and there’s tears rolling into my beer”. It’s a universal experience, whether it’s because you’re a bit too drunk or way too sober, it’s okay to let it out; a message that this song embodies.
Murder Club embraces the conventional ideas of girlhood and the quintessentially feminine. The synth, played by Lily Gray, creates a unique but familiar sound that would fit perfectly into a montage in a movie. It underpins each song, symbolic of the unifying experience of womanhood that comes to a head in the toilets of a bar.
I couldn’t help myself and I had to have this album as my soundtrack for getting ready to go pubbing and clubbing. Listening to this EP while getting ready is an unparalleled experience as someone who usually struggles to choose between listening to Hole (one of the bands that Murder Club are influenced by) and Gwen Stephani’s bubble pop electric. On 29 March, arrange a night out with the girls and have a listen to this invigorating EP and do some shots. In the words of Ellie Couburn (guitar, vocals): "it's a not a proper night out unless someone makes a fool of themselves".
Night Out from Murder Club is out 29 March via Venn Records and available on all good streaming platforms.
