Fiery indie punk band PLAIINS have today announced their upcoming debut album Happy Faces, set for release on August 15 via Long Branch Records.
PLAIINS have been on a musical rollercoaster since their inception in late 2020. Already having played with the likes of ITCHY, Cold Years, LEAP, Press Club, and many more, the band signed with Long Branch Records of SPV in 2024. The hard-working group has already released over 20 songs to date, regularly hitting the top playlists on Spotify since the beginning, as well as garnering features on BBC Radio 1, BBC Introducing, KERRANG! chart, and RBB fritz. There's no stopping their momentum as PLAIINS bring a unique blend of British punk, indie, and alt rock, pulling inspiration from the likes of IDLES, Hives, Soft Play, Bad Nerves, The Streets, and Viagra Boys.
"I wanted us to make an album that would stand the test of time, is coherent and characterful, unique and of our own, and would be a great contribution to the wonderful catalog of rock music. I have so much love, reverence, and adoration for the greats and I wanted us to at least be on that level," says singer Chris Reardon.
Along with the album news, the band has also released the new single "Row She Said."
Stream "Row She Said" here.
"'Row She Said' is a song against right wing nationalism," comments Reardon. "We talked about writing a song like this for a while. I wanted to do it with class and not [write] something lyrically one-dimensional, It had to be done poetically with layers and also [be] open for different interpretations unless you read the lyrics and also knew the context where we were coming from. They're my favorite kind of songs, especially when discussing a topic such as this."
He continues, "There are too many punk songs that tackle this subject too plainly, in my opinion, although that also has its place. But I think we really did it right on this one. 'She' in this context is the country where the protagonist is from and how they feel their country calls them and pushes them to protect their idea of sovereignty. I was writing more from the UK point of view, since it's where I'm from, especially in the wake of Brexit. But we also wrote it from the perspective where the [other] guys are from — Germany — but can apply to any country really."
When it came down to the album, Reardon explains, "We all talked about what we wanted to achieve on the album musically speaking and how we wanted to go into the process. We all reflected on what we felt we do best as a band and how we can really hone those elements in and push them to the limit. We all also wanted to add more indie elements into the music, something we've touched on but we wanted to make that more significant in the album. As well as the Britishness to the sound.
"As the singer, it was quite funny because the guys asked me why don't I sing in my normal English accent? I had never thought about it before. I always had a bit more of an American twang when I sang but that was something we opened up and of course felt very natural! In songs like 'Wooha!' and 'Snvkes.,' we had pushed this more rhythmic 'rap' like vocal style too and that was something we wanted to incorporate more. We really worked the songs and never settled for 'that will do.'
"We wanted the album to be fun and bombastic. To have lyrics that would make you laugh but once you sat down and read them would have much more lyrical depth. This is where the idea of paper bags came around. On the surface, there's a face painted on a paper bag which makes you laugh or takes you back for a moment. But when you take off the mask, there's a person underneath that takes time to know and understand and is more complex. There's an element of characterture, almost cartoonish and over blown in some of the lyrics and vocal delivery. We wanted something visual that represented that too.
"Our producer was Manuel Renner as well as mixing and mastering engineer of Ueberlaerm Studios for the album. We have worked with him since the beginning of the band and he has always been such an incredible collaborator and producer. He really helped us take the songs to the next level. We recorded the drums at Sound Pauli in Hamburg where we are based and Manuel and Tobi Schmidt did a great job. We recorded the guitars, bass, and vocals mostly at Ueberlaerm Studios and bits and pieces at my studio in Hamburg."
PLAIINS ARE:
Chris Reardon — Vocals + Guitars
Timon Lanzinger — Bass
David Suhlrie — Drums
Florian Kaninck — Guitars
