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The Early Mornings’ music harks back to a time when punk and its message used to be crystalline and straight to the point. Taking all what was good from the original anarchist’s genre of choice, the power trio from Manchester re-purpose punk’s blueprint into a modern-day package of empirical commentary with a twist of minimalist instrumentation.

Debut single “Artificial Flavour” walks a tightrope of rubbery baselines and angular lead melodies that echo the proto-disco stylings of bands such as Shopping but shuns their frenetic pacing. Opening instead with a guitar-line coarse and cacophonic, the song bristles with a subtle tension, allowing singer Annie Leader to deliver flippant lyrics of how “happiness and boredom are not so different” to flesh out the confrontational mood on show. 

The release provides a refreshing tonic to the onslaught of hype bands that are pouring out of the UK as of late, authentically capturing the scuzz of the artier side of Manchester’s thriving music scene. Proving that there’s still merit in going back to basics and keeping things simple, having an eye on what The Early Mornings will do next surely won’t lead to any disappointments.

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