Child's Pose: S/T 7"

It's break time and alumni of Sauna Youth, Nekra, Sarcasm, Woolf and a hundred other top set London groups have tied their laces together just to feel a feeling. Falling into each other, these elements together make a truly delightful heap. This is Childs Pose's debut single, four class-clown chants of caustic, affecting pop that blend elastic snark with darker energies. While you'll hear all the best sonic trademarks from each member's other efforts, this still feels new, like a fully-realised curriculum of dynamic, surprising, stop-start punk rock. There's a manic rush of hopeful, delayed gratification and in these songs, like drawing a smiley face on a cracked egg full of soil and seeds. Check in every day. Yes, you're getting warmer. You're feeling better. (Bryony Beynon)

Our take: Debut EP from this new London group, and fans of that city’s incredible DIY punk scene of the past decade or so will be salivating at the mention of a lineup featuring members of “Sauna Youth, Nekra, Sarcasm, Woolf and a hundred other top set London groups.” Sauna Youth fans in particular should get stoked, as these four songs from Child’s Pose remind me a lot of Sauna Youth’s poppier moments like “Oh Joel” and “Transmitters,” which is high praise indeed as those are some of my favorite punk tracks of the past several years. Even though they don’t share any members, this EP also reminds me a lot of Good Throb’s LP… while Good Throb’s other material could be pretty abrasive and even no wave-y, the LP found them embracing their poppier side, and while Child’s Pose’s songs here are probably a little more musically complex, they have a similarly ecstatic, sing-along quality to them. Also, like Frau and Snob and a number of other recent punk bands from the London area, there seems to be something subtly intellectual and sophisticated in Child’s Pose music, but they manage to bring across those qualities while still very much keeping the focus on the visceral thrill of singing along to a catchy, energetic, and minimalistic punk tune. I’ve probably done Child’s Pose something of a disservice by writing more about their scene than the actual band or record under consideration, because they’re clearly far more than just a product of their environment… I just find that particular environment so fascinating and so rewarding to follow that I guess I just let this description get away from me. Long story short, though, it’s a brilliant record and you should buy it!