EP REVIEW: With Teeth – Spiralling

‘…ideas from post-hardcore, dance punk, and alternative rock coalesce into a behemoth wedge of undiluted fury…’

Norwich’s With Teeth have been laying down their combination of post-hardcore and alternative rock since 2023, with their debut single ‘Benign’ being swiftly followed up by their debut EP ‘Phantom Comfort’. Garnering the attention of BBC Introducing and gaining notoriety for a ferocious live presence, it has been just over two years since we last heard from the band’s studio presence, but that wait has been more than worth it; ‘Spiralling’ is an absolutely incendiary sophomore EP that demands you pay attention.

‘Self-Made Defeat’ is a brilliantly danceable slab of alternative rock fury, ducking and weaving through rip-roaring rhythms and incendiary riffs. A swaggering instrumental bridge is pockmarked by snappy percussion, before erupting into a celebratory inferno of a final chorus, decorated with hand claps. Vocalist Dael Jordan is a wonderful presence to behold, his dismay at a sleepwalking society laced with a theatrical, scathing venom.

‘Poor Corpses’ is brimming with a surprising amount of intricate musicianship, as guitars dance through arpeggiated patterns above a thunderous rhythmic landscape. The track races towards a thrilling climax that gallops forwards, riffs searing the landscape in a devilishly cinematic display of ferocity ‘Minotaur’ pulls influence from the post-structural masterpiece of a novel that is House of Leaves, with its ever changing house and its untold horrors brought to life through moments of unnerving quiet, illuminated alone by sparkling guitars. In parallel to these segments are moments of punishing violence that demand movement.

‘Burn’ is a wicked take-down of the growing racist masses of the UK that proclaim to love their country, before voting for predators that would sell their grandmother to the highest bidder. The lyrics are acerbically witty, with a particularly amusing line being that of washing their hands of allegations of racism thanks to their love of ‘a korma’. The breakdown in the back half of the track is a monolithic onslaught of riffs that will have you moshing in your living room.

Truly, With Teeth’s understanding of how to instil energy into their songs is a marvel to behold. ‘Spiralling’ is, from start to finish, a brilliantly gripping rollercoaster to experience, as ideas from post-hardcore, dance punk, and alternative rock coalesce into a behemoth wedge of undiluted fury. They are the performers in the truest sense, charismatic and chaotic, and that feels certain to take the band far if there is justice in this world.

RATING: 79/100

For Fans Of: Bicurious, Muse, Queens of the Stone Age, Pleiades, IDLES

Physical copies are available to purchase here.

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