Hello reader,
Welcome back. How are you?
Today, we’re going to delve into the band Sports Team. The band has been active since 2016 is based in London, and five of the six current band members met while attending the University of Cambridge. The sixth member, original bassist Jerry Cummins, left to start a regenerative five. The band’s current lineup consists of Alex Rice (vocals), Robert Knaggs (lyrics, backing vocals, rhythm guitar), Henry Young (lead guitar, lap steel), Oli Dewdney (bass), Al Greenwood (drums), and Ben Mack (synths, piano & percussion)
The band’s first release was the Winter Nets EP (2018), followed by Keep Walking! EP (2019) and then the group’s first full-length album, Deep Down Happy (2020), and Gulp! (2022). Deep Down Happy garnered positive reviews, was nominated for a Mercury Prize, and peaked at #2 on the UK official albums chart, while the album reached #1 on the Scottish Albums chart in 2020. And Gulp! reached #3 in both the UK and Scottish Albums chart in 2022.
And now, just over three years later, comes the band’s third full album, Boys These Days, out via Bright Antenna Records on Friday, May 23rd, for your listening pleasure. From the album’s press release, guitarist and lyricist Robert Knaggs said, “Looking back at the finished record, if there is a thread to the album, it is that dissonance of modern life. You wake up in the morning, and by the time you have your breakfast, you’ve scrolled through 8000 different narratives that have no cohesive thread. As you go through Instagram Stories, Twitter, or whatever, you get an insane combination of things like porn, tragedy, war, violence, sex, money, inspirational quotes… there’s no narrative anymore, no unifying myth. You’re in the churn, and there is no thread guiding you back through the labyrinth.” Knaggs continued elaborating, saying, “For me at least, you don’t want to try to write a concept album, it’s a nightmare place to wind up lyrically, so we didn’t sit down with a concept in our minds at the start. By not thinking too hard or trying to be too curatorial with the lyrics, just allowing yourself to write about what you’re seeing every day, we ended up with a group of tracks that reflected the daily mayhem around us.”
Now for some hype for your ears and eyes from the band’s YouTube channel:
Fans of Subarus unite? The official video for the banger of a song, “I’m In Love (Subaru)”:
(All credits and rights to Sports Team)
The beach and sky setting within the video for the song, “Condensation”:
(All credits and rights to Sports Team)
A song that was influenced by a tour in the US, “Bang Bang Bang”:
(All credits and rights to Sports Team)
Overall, Boys These Days showcases the band’s talents once again. While reviewers and critics in the past have tried and will continue to discount the bands’ Cambridge education and what perspective one assumes comes with it, we won’t delve into that further. I see this as a waste of time, especially in reviewing new music with musicians I don’t know firsthand. The fact that critics, fans, and even detractors can agree on is that this band is immensely talented. They put out solid albums that feature some excellent songs with catchy hooks. Boys These Days and its opening saxophone and 80s melody from the opening song about a Subaru is not only a catchy earworm, and the single that drew me to find out about this album’s existence and want to hear more, but the song also serves as an incredible way to start an album. I could listen to songs like that all fucking day with glee. Listen further into the album; you’ll find songs with variance in melody from 80s sound to more modern pop and rock, neo-Western, and even an anthem or two. The lyrics seem grounded in the realities of life, at times offering commentary that has varying levels of sardonicism without taking away from the musicianship, compositions, or the quality of the music. The balance between melody and vocals is a well-crafted and executed blend. The vocals are superb and crisp throughout, and the production is top-notch. Kudos to all those involved in the band and the creation of this album.
Boys These Days gets 4 out of 5 Scum Drops from me. It’s an above-average album that offers catchy hooks, many good songs, and is well put together. To me, the album fits well into the bands’ discography. Is it your favorite Sports Team release? Where do you place it? I suggest adding it to your collection in the format(s) of your choosing.
Boys These Days Track listing [song length]
- I’m In Love (Subaru) [4:01]
- Boys These Days [3:32]
- Moving Together [3:35
- Condensation [3:30]
- Sensible [3:19]
- Planned Obsolescence [3:00]
- Bang Bang Bang [3:39]
- Head To Space [4:30]
- Bonnie [4:04]
- Maybe When We’re 30 [4:28]
Total runtime: 37:38
I’ll always advocate that you take the time to listen to every album in its entirety. The listening process with Boys These Days will take just over half an hour from start to finish, and a little more than an hour if you listen twice back-to-back. Along the way, you’ll discover your own favorite songs without the influence or bias of others. After a few listens on my own, I found the songs highlighted in green font above to be my favorite songs on this album.
Like what you heard and want to find merch or when Sports Team is on tour? Check out their site, follow them on Instagram, Facebook, listen to more on their Spotify page, and YouTube channel and Linktree.
Thank you for reading and supporting good music.
Until next time,
Alex
Scummy Water Tower Productions co-founder, reviewer, business manager, and editor. Thank you for visiting this site, scummywatertower.com, and YouTube for Water Tower Sessions and SWT Interviews. And all of our socials.
Questions, feedback, or more? Contact me: alex@scummywatertower.com
