If you missed Shame when they rolled through Seattle on their first international tour a couple of weeks ago then you truly missed out. The British post-punk five-piece put on such a raucous performance, with frontman Charlie Steen at one point literally surfing through the crowd by standing/crawling from shoulder to shoulder (not sure if there's a name for that since I didn't even know it was an option until then). The young South London band has caused quite a stir in the past six months, with just one debut album out: Songs of Praise. It's easy to see why when their music has the sarcastic smirk of teenagerhood combined with the nostalgic Fugazi-esque snarling that makes it timeless. "One Rizla" was their lead single and the band told the Fader back in November that, “Embracing insecurity as a strength is what this song is about. It's the first song we ever wrote as a band and I think that's reflected in the simplicity of it. It's honest and raw, whilst attempting a stab at number one in the pop charts across the eastern hemisphere. We wanted to turn the album artwork into the video for ‘One Rizla,’ highlighting our vulnerability as individuals whilst paying homage to [U.K. cult movie] Withnail & I simultaneously.” Songs of Praise is out now on Dead Oceans. - Jasmine Albertson
