Cabbage have been uncharacteristically quiet over the past few months (barring a little Christmas tune), and they bloody well deserved that break after releasing a gargantuan amount of music since their first EP dropped in 2016.
Their new single ‘Torture’ is the ideal palate-cleanser, a totally different sonic direction from the absurdity and fury of their early efforts and their gloomy and gothic official debut album ‘Nihilistic Glamour Shots’.
The band described it on Twitter as “our attempt at The Beach Boys if we ran out money before getting the orchestra in”, and to be fair that’s not too far off the mark. ‘Torture’, in spite of its name, has quite a cheery 60s vibe; seeing a more melodic Cabbage in comparison to their usual wildness.
It’s catchy as you like, both in terms of the tune and the lyrics. That riff really gets in your skull in the best way possible. If you’re thinking “this doesn’t sound like the Cabbage I know and love!”, just hold on a second.
Cabbage have experimented with all sorts throughout their existence, and ‘Torture’ is no different, but the thing that always remains constant is the unwavering politics of their lyrics. These lads are passionate about their views, and it’s fair to say that socialism runs through their collective veins.
‘Torture’, underneath its happy-go-lucky exterior, is another defiant stand against austerity, with co-vocalist Lee Broadbent running down the list of things he’d rather do than accept the current state of the nation.
It’s definitely worth name-checking Broadbent by the way, as his vocals on this track are arguably the best he’s ever produced. Obviously it’s not easy to sound note-perfect when you and everyone around you is going completely apeshit, as is the norm with Cabbage, but he certainly proves he can hold his own in a more relaxed setting with ‘Torture’.
‘Torture’ is yet another tick beside Cabbage’s name. They’re a versatile band that always have something important to say, and this track does nothing if not whet your whistle for their upcoming UK tour and presumably some more new material on the horizon.
They refuse to stand still for any length of time, and that makes them one of the most interesting acts in the country at the moment.