What does LURK sound like?

A melting pot of the finest post-punk and muddy hardcore rock.

The review of LURK – Natural Causes

For their first EP since their 2021 album ‘Around the Sun‘ which introduced me to their sound, LURK continues to embrace crunchy alt-rock with a punk bent. With ‘Natural Causes’ the quintet feel like they are free to experiment and play with different setups. Whilst each track may be charged with angry riffs, the way each track delivers them is different.

The opening title track is a smorgasbord of ideas all smashed together in under three minutes. LURK move from anthemic noodling power chords to a rumbling blitz of rolling drums and skittish guitar breakouts. It is as if the band doesn’t want to sit still and has no qualms about switching tempo or riff structure to throw the listeners off for a few moments. ‘World On A String’ is initially a bass-led anthem that gets punkier and muddier as the track moves on. There is a section where synths pile in and we move from moody punk to a playful poppier vocal motif like we’re cheering on the end of the world. It works so well and shows the rate of travel a LURK song has over three minutes.

Reminding me of Soundgarden’s ‘The Day I Tried To Live’ initially, ‘Honey Hive’ is a riot. The only four-minute track on the EP, LURK lets this one build into a glorious frenzy that any mid 90’s alt-rock band would be proud to own. Whereas most of the EP features crispy guitars and raspy vocals, this track feels more produced. There are lots of interconnected guitar and bass riffs working in unison to make this track stand out from the rest. ‘1229’ is the polar opposite. This track sees LURK channel their early 70s punk and bedroom rock with total abandon.

Freedom to experiment is the theme across the EP. In ‘Dark Humour’, various synths are whipped out to give a galactic feel to the crunchy hardcore riffs. Smashing single note chugs like a Stone Temple Pilot track on steroids, LURK balances hardcore and post-punk beautifully as vocalist Kevin shouts and barks over the top of aggressive sheers of guitars. The EP rounds off with the superb ‘Pedestrian’ which gives nods to grungy hardcore rock with muddy choruses whilst the verses have smooth guitar twangs stolen from a 70’s stadium piece. The song asks what would muddy punk sound like with a country twang and ‘Pedestrian’ delivers a memorable answer.

‘Natural Causes’ is a tour de force of new ideas from a band sounding confident and comfortable. LURK has consistently rocked out with the best of them since its inception. With six songs slicing rock into six subgenres, they’ve shown yet again they are no one trick pony too. Perfectly timed for the festival season, if you want some fresh hardcore punk for 2023 – make it LURK.

Recommended track: Honey Hive

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