Bimbo is a rowdy sibling art rock duo from Marquette, Michigan. Gretchen McKenzie plays guitar and performs vocals. Dawson McKenzie plays the drums. They are gearing up for their debut album ‘The Bimbonacci Sequence’, which comes out on 18th September. The final single in promotion for it is ‘Sick Moves’ and I’m instantly reminded of a more chaotic, trippy, time-signatured The White Stripes.
The single is built around a rising guitar riff and an odd, polyrhythmic drum pattern. The duo were inspired by rock bands that channel intense joy. Bimbo cite Metz, The Stooges, The Cramps and Krill as inspiration, allowing them to create rageful rants and sparks of wild release as they groove and jam together. There’s something very punk about Gretchen’s vocals, and at times a purity that reminds me of Bjork’s Sugarcubes era. It’s the stumbling time signature that kept me coming back to the track, though. Dawson shares:
“With the drums, I aim to find grooves in odd meters and build textures in interesting ways. Our main goal is always to write something that will be fun for us to play.”
‘Sick Moves’ is a reference to the kinds of things people have to do to survive in the wilderness, be that in the natural wild or society’s wild city life. Maybe that explains the intense squeals, growls, and barks that spill out during the track. Gretchen explains:
“I live off-grid in the woods, so I spend a lot of time alone and awed by nature. I feel very raw a lot of the time. Have you ever shit outside in a blizzard? Very raw, very real.”
Whilst I think that quote has gifted us with the potential title for album number two, we can enjoy Bimbo’s debut album first. You can pre-order ‘The Bimbonacci Sequence’ on Bandcamp. For more information about releases and tour dates, visit Bimbo’s website. It’s delightfully late 2000s in its design, when the internet was playful, fun, and useful.
Support Higher Plain Music
Higher Plain Music is part of the Higher Plain Network – a one-man indie media project. If you like what I do, please consider supporting me using Patreon for as little as $1/£1 a month. In return, you’ll receive additional perks for supporting me, such as behind-the-scenes content and free downloads. You can also donate using PayPal.
If you can’t help financially, then reading and sharing the website helps, too. When you click on an Amazon affiliate buy now link and purchase something on Amazon, I receive a few pence in referral commission. All your support will enable me to produce better content, more often. I’d love to make this a full-time media network, and your support can make that happen. Thank you for helping keep truly independent media alive.
Discover more from Higher Plain Music
Subscribe to get the latest posts sent to your email.
