Dead Horse – Caught the Nonsense

It’s always exciting to hear any band at their most absurd and unhinged. On that note, new LP Caught the Nonsense marks the exciting debut from punky noise-garage-rock trio Dead Horse. The London/Kent-based band haven’t disappointed, making sure the four-year wait since their last EP was worth our while. There’s satire, sax and synth outbursts, and, oddest of all, onion-based carnage for all the family.

Earlier this year, we were teased with two singles: The Pistols-flavoured “Dynamite” and jaunty love song “I Would Die”: with the off-key, jagged guitar lines of first-wave Midwest punk.

Across the record, there are elements of rockabilly colliding with noisy garage, added sax skronk, and raunchy guitar breakdowns. Other tracks boast bouncy indie rock, increasingly deranged mutant rhythms, think Viagra Boys, manic “moron piano,” think The Stooges, and a mid-album instrumental packed with off-balance, dirty riffs, pounding drums, and surprising sprinkles of synths and strings.

Here’s where it gets weirder. “Onions,” with its witty lyrics and a trusty, rollicking riff, could easily have belonged to the early post-punk era. It’s bonkers but undeniably catchy, and 27-second thumper “Meat Room” unleashes some pent-up rage in true Oi! style.

“Funny Farm” is delivered in a sped-up rasp, with similarities to an early ’80s UK Subs track, also about a farm. Freeing dissonant guitar pairs with shouty yelps and theatrical baritone overdubs, as half-tongue-in-cheek lyrics address wealth disparity and injustice: “Can we have meritocracy? / Kill off all the aristocracy / Can we all have good health? / Harvest organs while making wealth.”

Other standouts include “Caught the Nonsense”: which takes on a moody, ’80s goth, dance-punk feel. There are even hints of The Fall and Billy Idol, but with loads more bite. Big drums, distorted twang, and muffled glitchy effects start the party, as organ, synths, and sax later add to the pandemonium.

Closer “Right Now” is the only track with an acoustic start, though that doesn’t mean it loses any edge. It soon evolves, as the band dress up their haunting feelings of despondency and dread with a sardonic, matter-of-fact narrative, which comfortably sits somewhere between Blur’s “Parklife” and the Dead Boys’ “Ain’t It Fun.” This is the track to go to if you don’t already know what these guys are about. Attacking the right wing, wealth-hoarders, and the monarchy, the peak of their warped humor sees frontman Kevin Lennon refer to old Winston Churchill as a “top cunt,” in one of his stuffy, regal, welly-brigade caricatures. The whole thing is a satirical yet perfectly constructed middle finger to all those who would dare to clutch their metaphorical pearls and shriek “off with their head” at them in retaliation. Just look at that album cover.

With this debut LP, Dead Horse have proved that they’re far from just slapstick and noise. As well as some excellent leading basslines, guitar is a real star of the show throughout, and many of their influences have led them to produce a more mature sound that, musically and lyrically, goes beyond typical punk sensibilities—yet somehow still fits into this madhouse. Dead Horse have well and truly caught the nonsense, and they’re infecting everyone else with it too.