Album Review: Bilk - ‘Essex, Drugs and Rock and Roll’
If there was just one word to describe Bilk, it would surely be unapologetic. The Chelmsford trio have an iron-clad belief in what they do, and no time for those who try to tell them otherwise. They make the music they want to make, and if some people don’t like it - so what? Their logo is quite literally a spitting snail, which gives you an idea of how little they care what people think of them.
It’s this unshakeable self-belief which has transformed Bilk from small-time Essex outfit to one of the nation’s most talked-about new bands. Their path to notoriety has been 7 years in the making, beginning in 2018 with the release of debut single ‘Give Up’, which is exactly what they refused to do over the years that followed. Countless singles, 3 EPs, a self-titled debut album and thousands of snail emojis later, and Bilk find themselves with an ardent fan base eager to hear their sophomore effort ‘Essex, Drugs and Rock and Roll’, recorded in rapid-fire sessions at Edge and Silkmore studios with producer Andy Gammon.
A play on words which pays tribute to their hometown, the album title is perhaps most notable for positioning rock and roll as a defining component of the band’s identity. Indeed, Bilk had an extensive range of merch which read: “No bollocks. Just Rock N Roll”, leaving little doubt as to how the band view themselves, as well as those who operate in less anthemic realms. This devotion to rock and roll - less a genre of music, and more a mystical umbrella term denoting a hedonistic, free-thinking approach to life - is apparent from the off, with opening track ‘RnR’ standing for exactly what you think it does.
The song more than lives up to its title, a buzz of feedback making way for a meaty riff which Angus Young wouldn’t look out of place playing. “Today’s the day, I’m gon’ speak my mind, gotta have my say/ Sick and tired of all those doubting me, trying to make me change”, spits guitar-wielding frontman Sol Abrahams, backed by a tight, driving rhythm section consisting of bassist Luke Hare and drummer Harry Gray. As the rap-rock verses give way to a singalong chorus expressing Abrahams’ refusal to be anything less than a larger-than-life rock star, the album’s mission statement becomes clear: Bilk are here to revitalise the lost art of unpretentious, uplifting rock music, whether you like it or not.
'RnR’ has been criticised by some online for sharing lyrical similarities with Oasis’ ‘Rock ‘n’ Roll Star’, but in truth it’s a clever melding of Bilk’s major influences, the end result sounding as if a Mike Skinner-fronted AC/DC decided to reimagine the Oasis classic for the 21st Century. In the same way that Oasis combined the best aspects of the Beatles, Sex Pistols and Slade to create their own distinctive sound, Bilk are simply partaking in a similar sort of cultural bricolage, delivering a sound that’s as fresh as it is familiar.
Over the course of the album the band subvert their style to suit the lyrical themes of each track, and this becomes apparent immediately with the second song ‘Slag’, a breezy celebration of sex with a pop-punk feel. If Blink-182 were British and sung about Hinge-facilitated hookups, it would probably sound a lot like this. As humorous as the song is, it also makes a point of calling out the deep-rooted misogyny which still plagues society: “Let’s all just have sex and make the most of life/ And why is it wrong for girls but it’s okay for guys?”, Abrahams questions over a flurry of power-chords, going on to highlight the importance of “consent and a decent condom”. While sex has been a staple of popular music ever since Elvis ‘the Pelvis’ Presley earned his nickname thanks to his suggestive on-stage moves, it’s not often explored through such an overtly societal lens, much less with the kind of relatable wit which Abrahams excels at. What initially comes across as a bit of a bizarre listen reveals itself to be surprisingly important, and while not sonically similar at all, it shares some lyrical DNA with Jarvis Cocker’s iconic, socially-aware take on sex.
Another legendary Sheffield outfit appears to have influenced the next track ‘On It’, a raucous celebration of wild nights out which begins with a beefy, hypnotic bass hook, and slowly builds to a chorus which will no doubt have the band’s youthful fan base jumping in unison when they play it live. Bilk are often compared to a young Arctic Monkeys, and ‘On It’ makes it easy to see why. With a riff which nods to ‘Dancing Shoes’, a bridge that pays homage to the opening of ‘A Certain Romance’, and a general bounciness which recalls ‘Old Yellow Bricks’, the Sheffield band’s influence on the track is undeniable, and much welcome. With Alex Turner having outgrown his street-poet post long ago, Abrahams’ warts-and-all recollection of living for the weekend feels like his audition for the position, and though Kid Kapichi’s Jack Wilson provides stiff competition via their song ‘Get Down’, Bilk’s almost exclusively under-25 fanbase may well give them the edge when it comes to speaking for Gen Z.
‘F Up’ is another song likely to appeal to the band’s younger fans, with Abrahams revelling in the kind of care-free lifestyle most enjoy in their late teens and early 20’s: “Forget all your worries cos today I’m proud to be me/ I live my life with no responsibility”, he declares in a particularly catchy chorus. “I know it’s no real right to boast, that I can only just make toast/ But I’m fine, cos I’m a fuck up 'til the day that I die”, he grins as the song returns to the wavy, Blur-ish verses which should ensure it finds a place on many a summer playlist this year. ‘Summer Days’ also looks set to be a staple of warmer seasons, with its uplifting, melodic sound perfectly complimenting the song’s sweet and earnest lyrics, Abrahams paying tribute to his girlfriend Beatriz with a vulnerability not often found in Bilk songs. This tender, emotional side to the typically swaggering frontman is further explored in ‘Beatriz’, which does exactly what it says on the tin and reflects upon the couple's blossoming romance over mellow, largely acoustic instrumentation.
While acoustic backing often indicates a song will be of a more subdued nature, this isn’t necessarily the case, as mid-album track ‘Skidmark’ more than proves. The song is stripped back but brutal, Abrahams laying into a former acquaintance of some sort with ferocious honesty. “If there came a situation I was locked in a room/ With Osama bin Laden, Adolf Hitler and you/ And I had a gun with two bullets to make shit right/ I’d let those evil pricks live and then shoot you twice”, he admits. Whatever the beef is, it’s clearly deadly serious, and you believe him as he accuses the unnamed man of being “horrible and sleazy”, his unflinching words floating on an earworm melody that’ll play in your head days after hearing it. ‘Tommy’ is another track which takes aim at toxic masculinity, telling the tale of an aspiring actress who falls for “tough guy” Tommy, leading her down a destructive path of drug use and domestic abuse. The dark lyrical themes are backed up by an edgier, more scathing sound, Hare’s crackling bassline building tension before the chorus explodes with anger and despair, Abrahams proceeding to throw a face-melting solo into the mix to really drive home the tragedy of the girl's wasted potential. “Love, it can kill you if you let it”, he observes, framing the song as a cautionary tale advising against extreme infatuation.
After a slight latter half lull, the last song ‘Band Life Blues’ marks a return to the high standard on display throughout the vast majority of the record, telling the story of the band so far over an infectious, 12-bar blues groove. “We found this curly-headed man who liked cocaine and The Jam”, acts as the song’s lyrical introduction to Gray, but it could just as easily be a summation of Bilk themselves, who like The Jam are a punky three-piece hailing from suburbia, with the lead singer's father doubling up as band manager. And while there are flashes of Paul Weller’s former group on tracks such as ‘Tommy’, it’s final single ‘Go’ which makes a musical correlation between the two trio's most obvious.
Beginning with an addictive, kinetic bassline and cracking drum beat reminiscent of The Beatles’ ‘Tomorow Never Knows’, the song immediately establishes itself as one of the album’s most exhilarating moments, and that's before Abrahams unleashes his uncompromising, hip-hop inspired vocal, taking aim at the band’s detractors with defiance and verve. “I’ll make a list of every industry prick that I’ve met/ These people wanna act all nice and that but they don’t even stay for the set”, he raps at breakneck speed, the bass and drums crashing around him as his guitar rings out, a grounding presence amid the song’s frantic sonic onslaught. “So you can say what you say, I’ll still never care ‘bout your boring ways/ Cos I’m free, I’m free, I’m just doing me”, he sneers with genuine rawness, proceeding to plough into a solo so singalong it could be ripped straight from the ‘Definitely Maybe’ songbook.
On an album full of high points, the visceral blast of ‘Go’ ensures that it manages to take the cake, and perhaps that’s fitting, seeing as it offers the clearest insight into Abrahams' current mindset: “And I don’t give a single fuck if you don’t like/ Because I’m coming through the scene and taking everything in sight”. With a dedicated, almost cult-ish following, and an extensive upcoming tour taking them from Camden’s 1,500-capacity Electric Ballroom to European cities including Milan and Berlin, it’d be unwise to bet against Bilk’s plans for world domination.
These snails are supersonic.
Words by Ben Left
