THICK have just released their sophomore album Happy Now, and it’s a blazing comet of an album. Nikki Sisti (Vocals/guitar), Kate Black (Vocals/bass) and Shari Page (vocals/drums) shout, sneer, lament, confront and empower their way through a blizzard of cathartic fuzz, stick-breaking drums and bass lines so solid they could keep a building up in an earthquake.
The eleven tracks here mine optimism out of life’s often painful experiences. Nikki Sisti says: “Most of our songs lean toward optimism, even when there’s a lot of pain in them,” and THICK’s output is a “living diary. It’s not about toxic positivity or trying to force yourself into happiness; it’s about recognizing that it’s okay to feel a whole spectrum of emotions, and then getting to the other side and really growing from your experiences.”
Some of that emotional spectrum comes from using experiences taken from their own personal lives and the fact that the band approach song-writing and subject matter collaboratively. They are also proud of the strong bond they have with their growing following: “Getting to share our songs with new people and build community in places we’ve never been before has been the most fulfilling experience for us,” says Black. “We want to leave everyone smiling from ear to ear and get them moving around and hopefully look up at us and say, ‘Oh, I can do that. I’m gonna start my own band now.’”.
So many tracks on this album feel instantly familiar. From the high-energy opening of ‘Happiness’ (see video below) through to the surrogate-sulphate hit of ‘Something Went Wrong’, Happy Now is exhilarating; especially ‘Loser’ which is an immediate hit that feels like it’s been a classic track for years. The fact that the band wear their hearts on their sleeves at the same time as they drive their distortion pedals to the max is intoxicating and this album deserves to be played loud and heard live.
NB: I would also check out the extremely funny video + outtakes for ‘Fake News’ taken from the 2020 album 5 Years Behind.
THICK socials: Facebook | Twitter | Instagram | YouTube
Review by Paul F Cook
Keep up to date with all new content on Joyzine via our
Facebook / Twitter / Instagram / Mailing List