Barracuda

I first heard of Barracuda on a Saturday morning in January. Listening to Radio 6 Music, my ears pricked up, and not only because I’m a Heart fan, but because of how genuine and down to earth these guys sounded.

They were having fun, no pretence, just a love for their music. They played ‘Charlie’, their biggest single. Its the sarky punk anthem that sold out not one, but two, large, well-known venues in Leicester. Already conquering their local circuit, when lockdown is lifted, there’ll be no stopping them.

‘Charlie’ opens with unapologetic, abrasive guitars, with the sandpaper vocals, they scratch away any youthful innocence you thought they had. The chorus is persistent, a looping snarl, barking over and over. Dragging out every vowel in “char-lie” to uncomfortable lengths, digging his fingernails in and hanging on till the bitter end. His “demons” getting right in under your skin, It’s the personification of the post-gig high.

This frantic, jerky post-punk energy has been born again with bands like Idles, Shame and now Barracuda. But Barracuda’s metal-esk twang (a result of hours spent listening to Metallica) gives the band a razor sharp edge, tipping the punk into rock territory. From moshing into head banging.

These balaclava-clad boys are volatile, driving the track with a frothing at the mouth like urgency. Climbing to the final guitar solo that stomps across the fretboard like a man possessed, a paranoid explosion that makes the crowds erupt. Relentless drumming gives stamina to this paranoia, could this sit next to ‘I wanna be your dog’ in popular culture? The Stooge thrash echoed in ‘Charlie’ keeps Barracuda afloat, not sinking down to simply ‘punk’, but still, the heaviness of this track leaves you gasping for air.

Respecting the roots of their genre, ‘Charlie’ is a nod to the greats without losing any of their ‘Barracuda-ness’.The ever-looming album will be a turning point for the band. They managed to say so much in just three minutes, imagine the potency within 45.

Barracuda are a band you need to see live (if you can get a ticket) and hopefully, they’ll be heading down south. But in the meantime, listen to the single below and leave an ICM Rating out of 10.