Newcastle punk busy-bodies, Split Feed, have just topped off their gigantic year with “Trinkets”, a new single from their second and forthcoming EP Second Skin. Winning Triple j Unearthed’s Groovin’ The Moo competition and opening the festival in Maitland seems to have been only the beginning for the four-piece’s success. Split Feed have been busy getting their previous single “Homesick” all over Spotify playlists and touring with industry giants along the way. With the anthemic sound of “Trinkets”, not to mention the thematic elements, it doesn’t sound like these guys are slowing down anytime soon.
The track itself is a punchy, raw and catchy as it is cathartic. “Trinket” talks about mementos of previous relationships and the emotions tied to those objects; “That something so small could have so much meaning.” There’s honest lyrics such as that scattered throughout the song that don’t necessarily impress me as a writer, but help me connect with and respect the voice we’re hearing. I am incredibly curious to know what exactly the referenced trinket is. I like to think we can all fill that gap with something of our own.
“You’re taking me over”
The thumping drums really, really sell me on this one. The song starts with a vocal lead-in and takes a second to warm up but as soon as that snare kicks in, I’m ready to go. I can’t recall the last time there was so much power behind the words “you never left.” I also owe a lot of praise to vocalist Joe Willis for his performances just like this throughout. They’re words clearly sung with a lot of passion.
The single also has an accompanying video featuring washed-up glam rockers having a bit of disdain for working life, and soon reuniting. We see dudes with teased hair and excess mascara rocking business clothes trying to find a balance between passion and everyday life. The video ends with a fun performance at none-other-than Newcastle’s Cambridge Hotel to an audience of somebody’s grandmother who surfaces a few times during the video’s run. All in all we have an entertaining video to go along with a hypnotic song, which only makes me excited for Second Skin to hurry up and get here.
Watch “Trinkets” via YouTube below or find it via your usual streaming places!
