On the radar: Citizens

Published on 02/10/2009 16:15

Play: Don't Be Late »

In the pitfall-strewn realm of band nomenclature, Citizens is about as safe as it gets. It's on a par with Canada's Women, New York's Men and San Francisco's Girls in the non-descript stakes.

But then that's entirely the point.

"It's simple, unassuming, and gives people no preconceptions about us," explains singer/guitarist Craig McIntyre.

And it suits their music too. Citizens avoid things like subtlety, poetry and harmony; instead the Glasgow trio take a direct aim at your lugholes with maxed-out, clenched-fist post-hardcore rock. But before you indie fans go scurrying back to your Bon Iver LP, take heed: Citizens may rock hard, but they do so with inventiveness and guile.

Not convinced? Just listen to the disconnected interplay between guitar and bass on 'Shit Whistler', or the full-tilt, At the Drive-In style chopped-up rhythm of 'Melted'.

Sourced from the Under the Radar blog

Craig maintains that the last thing they are is straight-forward - "we're not quite anything, it's hard to place us" - and says that their influences range from "hardcore, indie, jazz and folk" to "black metal, doom, grind and good films".

Since January, Citizens (completed by Owen Batchelor on bass/vocals and Iain Stewart on drums) have ingratiated themselves with their native city's rock scene by adopting a simple gameplan: "We all enjoy playing music that's interesting for us to play, and that we would listen to ourselves."

The eagle-eyed among you may have picked up on at least one of the above names. Newest recruit Iain has been enjoying hype a-plenty as the pummelling sticks man with Bronto Skylift, while Owen has played bass with Jackie Onassis (the band, not the one-time First Lady).

While they may be well-kent faces on the local live scene, they have already gigged around the UK and aren't setting their horizons too close to home: "It's cool here, there's good bands and some good promoters but we enjoy going down south to play a lot too," Craig says.

True to the DIY ethos we're keen to shout about here on UtR, Citizens have already released an EP called Try Smiling (pictured, right) on their own Wolf Among Wolves label (available here), and Craig reveals that there's more where that came from: "Citizens will release something else either at the end of this year or start of next."

Whether you remember the name or not, there should be ample opportunity to apply for Citizen-ship in the next few months.

Like what you hear? Catch Citizens live at the following dates:

4 Nov @ Cardigan Arms, Leeds (with Boanthrope)

5 Nov @ Retro Bar, Manchester (with Boanthrope)

9 Nov O'Henry's, Glasgow (with Boanthrope)

19 Nov Captain's Rest, Glasgow

2 Dec @ Captains Rest (with Lords)