Punk rock band that shone at Harrogate venue dazzle on their brilliant new album

When long-standing punk band Percy took the stage at The Den in Harrogate last month, it had been nearly 25 years since legendary indie music broadcaster Steve Lamacq had lavished them with praise on his BBC Radio One show.

At the time amid the tailend of Britpop and the rise of Coldplay, the group’s classic Donny Rednecks single had seemed a bit of a throwback to the days of punk, a little disturbing and too obviously ‘real’, despite its sense of humour, dark as it was.

Today, incredibly, the four-piece York band’s latest album sounds equally out of time and much for the same reasons.

Released, as usual, on Ten Foot Records, the independent label set up by Percy themselves in 1998, New Phase reveals a band as relevant as ever but typically out of fashion.

Unlike Idles or Sleaford Mods, the ten new tracks recorded at Wild Bill’s Snooker Palace in York, show no signs of any significant influence from hip hop or electronic music.

Percy remain a genuine guitar band blazing their own trail with the energy of teenagers and the razor sharp lyrics of born critics.

Rooted in place as much as national headlines, Messrs Colin Howard (vocals/guitar), Andy Wiles (bass/sequencers), Paula Duck (keyboards) and Jason Wilson (drums) still aim for the jugular when it comes to impoverished lives and impoverished minds, albeit with their trademark twist of circus surrealism.

The best examples of this come in the brilliant opening track, Sink Estates Satanic Rites, Greedy People and Last Train To Selby.

Beyond the word “punk”, perhaps, Percy remain a hard band to pigeon hole completely.

The group’s edgy, scratchy energy is married to elements of post-punk, art rock and the avant garde.

The melodies are spiked with dissonance.

Percy view the world as an unsettling place and reserve the right to unsettle the listener.

Unlike Idles or Sleaford Mods, they press no easy buttons and offer no easy answers.

So good is New Phase, it will sound just as out of time 25 years from now.

Information: https://percyband.uk/