ALBUM REVIEW: Kill The Cop Inside My Head – YAKKIE
DIY punk supergroup, YAKKIE, have put out their debut record, Kill The Cop Inside Your Head. The members of the London-based quartet all come from various bands including DREAM NAILS (Janey Starling), PERSONAL BEST and PETROL GIRLS (Robin Gatt), COLOUR ME WEDNESDAY (Laura Ankles), and ITOLDYOUIWOULDEATYOU and JASMINE.4.T (Maeve Westall). YAKKIE was brought together by Starling after a short hiatus from music to focus on anti-prisons activism, and, now using her voice to bring that same energy to this new record, they have created something incredible that is already a major highlight in music releases this year.
Opening things up is the title track where the first thing to greet us is some distorted electronic noises and tuning of instruments before heading into a lower-volume punk composition that’s then contrasted by louder vocals that go between classic punk shouting to an anthemic sing-along style that, frankly, just sounds cool. This is then somewhat contrasted with following track, Criticise Me, that now seems to be noughties pop-rock inspired with some comparison to GO BETTY GO’s Very Very Rich Town (Sims 2 University players know what’s up) that is perfectly brought together by its anthemic nature and fun chorus.
The great thing with this record is that no song sounds the same and can go in many different directions in terms of style and meaning. One moment, things will take on a more serious, moody sound as heard on He Sleeps Alone, a nineties alternative inspired rock track that is reminiscent of THE SMASHING PUMPKINS. Atlas starts out as soft acoustic before the full band comes in halfway through, yet the raw tenderness remains as the lyrics throughout pertain to the ending and reminiscing of a relationship, and Secrets, another slow track, brings a whimsical atmosphere thanks to the use of psychedelic sounds.
Yet in the very next moment, the songs can take on a louder than life punk attitude, as heard on Lean Out, a riot grrrl song that uses the vocal style of spoken word mixed with harmonies as YAKKIE call out everyday sexism and overbearing emotional labours that women experience. Right Of Reply also uses spoken word vocals alongside a heavy bassline where the topic covers domestic violence against women, and Rabbit’s Got A Gun from the get go feels like it’s building up to something epic as each instrument comes in, ready for some type of kick off that, when it arrives, isn’t explosive but is surely satisfying.
All concluded with Under The Pavement Is The Beach, a song with a little funky bass beat and a message that reminds us that despite the doom and gloom that seems to surround us on the daily there is positivity and beauty in that darkness if you look carefully enough. A stunning way to end an equally stunning record.
Rating: 9/10
Kill The Cop Inside Your Head is set for release on February 13th via self-release.
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