Music > Album Reviews

Dead Buttons - Some Kind Of Youth

20/05/16

Hailing from Seoul and with their roots in the Korean alternative and punk scenes, Dead Buttons are a million miles from the K-Pop likes of PSY. This is proper RAWK music and it is, for the most part, a good, good thing. 

Single 16-22 is a cracking slice of swaggering Backyard Babies style glam-punk and is a contender for my song of the year. Desire, Tired of Youth and Witch all combine 60s garage with Motorhead and 80s hardcore. Hangover is akin to Dead Kennedys’ The Prey covered by early Sabbath and Nothing But You merges The Pretty Things with Radkey. Strangers is rousing folk-punk, curiously reminiscent of both Of Monsters And Men and Ducking Punches whilst I Want It is punky powerpop. 

It’s not all great. The heavy, Led Zep blues-rock of I Don’t Want You To Let Me Down and I Need A Million don’t do it for me. Useless Generation is the kind of ballad that 80s Eurometal bands delighted in. Those minor misfires aside, this is a cracking debut and well worth a listen. I bet they’re a riot live and someone should book them for the Owl or NAC pronto.

7/10