A Puppy Is For Life
Hello friends and let’s ring in the new year with this Puppy, a cutesy little voice from London with its sights set on the cosiest spot in the music business. Like a breath of fresh air, they sweep in and blow away the remaining cobwebs from last year and give us all something to cheer about.
Chug, chug, chug begins the very Sabbath like “Black Hole and then it’s quite deceptive with a lovely chorus.
“Vengeance” is mine, dear readers, as this little Puppy has his jaws clamped onto your ankle and is dragging you down to the ground. You can bemoan and bewail as much as you want in “Poor Me” but it is to no avail. Musically this is pure sunshine, so inviting and warm.
“Your sanity is wearing thin” as you “fear the wolf at the door”, an all too familiar story, I’m afraid but stay with me, things are getting better, I promise.
Fifth song in we have “And So I Burn” I am loving the vocals on this record, so pleasant and innocuous, I find myself sinking into the sofa, gently kissed into a most welcome oblivion, which leads nicely into “Entombed” very soulful rock, it’s really quite brilliant. Don’t get me wrong, there is extremely strong guitar work here too, but there is a mysterious quality I can’t quite put my finger on.
Come- Bye into the pit friends and let us circle until the cows (or sheep- well this is Puppy isn’t it?) come home.
This record is chock -full of loveliness as you’ll find in “World Stands Still” and with the offer to “Bathe In Blood”, hey come on, dive in!
“Nightwalker” is an invitation to go off for a wander, by mistake perhaps, the lyrics are great again
“Nightwalker take my hand, lead me back to your cold and twisted land” and the intrigue continues with “I still don’t know your name”.
We speed things up a touch now with “I Feel An Evil” as we head towards the finish line. With “Handlebars” we see that this bottle of champagne has never-ending bubbles, it is gleefully effervescent, a sparkling debut.
Run for the safety of your duvet as the “Demons” advance forth to wrap their loving arms around you with
“We’ll still be here, your demons in the night”.
With that it’s lights out my friends as we contemplate a new chapter in British metal.
Goat of departure? (The Black Dahlia Murder, anyone?), not bloody likely, this one has just arrived.
Azra Pathan
Puppy – The Goat out 25th January 2019 on Spinefarm Records