There’s something in a good band name. In a world where band names are finite, finding one that really captures the eye is rare, but The Shania Twainsaw Massacre managed to find one, a really good one. While bands like Michael Cera Palin and Carly Cosgrove have done the two-names-into-one, there’s something about combining the name of a beloved country-pop artist with a well-known horror movie. It somehow manages to capture the essence of this band that combines shoegazy post-hardcore with lyrics about animal slaughter.
I’ve been following The Shania Twainsaw Massacre for a little while now, diving into their fairly small catalogue, which includes a handful of singles and an EP. It wasn’t a lot, but of what there was, I couldn’t get enough of. So you can understand my excitement when they unveiled their next EP, Horsemaning, which would be dropping on August 21. This four-track EP further expands the band’s sound, bringing a slightly more post-hardcore influence to their catalogue.
Coming in at around 12 minutes, the EP dives a little more into the personal experiences that vocalist Connie Fairburn has been through, from binge-eating disorders to the daunting feeling of everything going wrong. These difficult themes, as with other songs in the band’s catalogue, are delivered in such a clever and catchy way that you can’t help but sing along. I now blame the track Bloat for having me walk around the house singing “eat it, eat it, eat it”. Though that’s a damn sight better than me walking around asking people to bleed me dry…
Instrumentally, Horsemaning moves slightly away from the doom-meets-shoegaze vibe of their previous EP, Denature, with the band pushing more into post-hardcore with a positively British tinge. Throwing back to some of the greats of the mid-00s, I’m hearing similarities to Hell is for Heroes, Hundred Reasons, and Reuben. It makes sense that they’ve just been pulled in to support Johnny Foreigner‘s Bristol show.
The Shania Twainsaw Massacre are one of those bands I genuinely hope blow up. They have all of the ingredients to be great: a recognisable name, lyricism that’s often absurd but actually means something, and fantastic instrumentation that balances loud and soft, creating walls of sound that don’t overwhelm one another. Huge props to Rowan Deverson, who recorded, mixed, and mastered this EP, for pushing the sound beyond DIY. Everything sounds well balanced and hits right when it’s supposed to. A truly enjoyable listen.
Overall, Horsemaning is a brilliant EP where my only criticism is that I wish it were a full album. It continues the band’s journey of crafting brilliantly haunting and brutally honest lyricism, paired with gritty, dark melodies and poppy post-hardcore choruses and riffs.
The Shania Twainsaw Massacre held their first headline show to celebrate the launch of the EP on August 21; they’re also set to play alongside Johnny Foreigner at Exchange, Bristol on September 7, and I’d wholly recommend it. Hopefully they come up north soon!
Score: 9/10
The Shania Twainsaw Massacre independently dropped Horsemaning on August 21.