The first few minutes of Talk Show’s (no not the late ’90s Stone Temple Pilots co-group) sophomore EP Touch The Ground EP sounds like a depraved discotheque, one where the DJ rambles madly and loses his mind, tossing in heavy bass with some furious post-punk. This UK group has an uncanny sound to them, falling somewhere in between Shame and an all-out rave band that loves the industrial grooves of someone like The Sisters of Mercy.
You’ve got the interplay between real drums and techno 808 drums mixed with blisteringly bright guitar trills as lead singer Harrison Swann croons in his talk-sing speech announcements that sometimes feel like his throat is being ripped from his neck. It’s violent and gritty; perfect for the narcissistic tendencies of post-punk. But it’s post-punk for dancing, not just wallowing in a pit of existential dread like most bands jumping on the genre’s popularity re-emergence. On “Cold House,” for example, you can’t help but move gleefully with the whirlwind of bass, guitar, and light ’80s synth melodies.
The madness continues with “Dirt In the Keyboard,” a slower track that utilizes one of the catchier bass riffs of 2022 that refuses to leave your mind. The lyrics in this one definitely feel a very stream of consciousness, adding to the general lunacy of the track. And the gang vocals that bring the song to a close are made for chanting. “Leather,” is all about the pounding drums. I truly feel sorry for the snare because you hear it being reduced to rubble. That should really end this EP, but a weird dark ambient number, “6” does, which is fine, but not really needed.
Regardless, on Touch the Ground, Talk Show proves they’re not just a carbon copy post-punk group, but a group willing to push the envelope into nebulous yet interesting waters. I also anticipate Talk Show live to be a good and sweaty experience.
