With their album Essex, Drugs and Rock and Roll scheduled for release on the 24th of January 2025, indie rock trio bilk are ready to get back on the road and back on the stage. Tickets are flying for their UK and EU tours, and the anticipation for the new album is only getting stronger. Hailing from Essex, frontman Sol Abrahams started bilk in 2018 and was later joined by Luke Hare (bass) and Harry Gray (drums).
bilk has never been a one-trick pony, refusing to be tied down to one specific genre or sound, and this 13-track album is a stellar example of the benefits of their creative freedom. Meandering between genres including classic rock, indie, punk, and blues; Essex, Drugs and Rock and Roll ticks all the boxes on how to write a stand-out album.
Kicking off with “RnR” a guitar-heavy, rocky track that would fit perfectly into an early 2000s movie’s opening sequence. Packed with flashy guitar riffs and a guitar solo that builds the song to its climax, the track acts as a perfect opener to the album, easing fans in with a bit of bilk’s classic rock/hip-hop fusion. The pace is then kicked up a notch in the intro of the second song “Slag” with its high-tempo drums and blunt lyrics, followed by “On It” another upbeat, guitar-heavy track.
The first unexpected twist of the album comes on the fourth track, the band’s first official love song “Summer Days”. Straying from the heaving instrumentals and brutish lyrics of the previous tracks, “Summer Days” brings a softer, more vulnerable side of Abraham’s to the surface, with lyrics like “Through everything, she’s the bestest thing, that ever did happen, to me” layered with synths and dreamy guitars. Flipping the atmosphere on its head, “Go” is a brutally honest, harsh, rock tune, with no shortage of drums and gritty vocals.
Track six is a stripped-back, jaunty and hilarious ode to an old coworker of Abraham’s. The title “Skidmark” already tells you plenty about his feelings towards this individual, but the shocking lyrics and outrageously witty wordplay will leave you stunned nonetheless. With lyrics such as “You think that you’re all charming, but you’re horrible and sleazy” and “You ain’t even worth a second or thought”, the track is reminiscent of Lily Allen’s early work, and is guaranteed to make anyone with a slightly twisted sense of humour laugh out loud.
Abraham’s reinforces his pride and confidence in “F Up”, he calls out the people who look down on his lifestyle, embracing his apathetic outlook and rejecting the social norms, through blunt lyricism and a thrilling guitar solo.
Venturing into the second half of “Essex, Drugs and Rock and Roll”, you’re greeted with another unexpected turn from bilk, in the form of a head-bopping, toe-tapping, Beatles-esque tune titled “Very Nice Life”, which brings to mind bands such as The Backseat Lovers, before segueing into “Tommy” a cautionary tale told through classic rock guitars and a third-person narrative. “Tommy” is the kind of track that compliments Abraham’s voice seamlessly, his accent and tone pushing the song forward with a brusque urgency.
bilk then switch to their romantic side once a gain for “Beatriz”, a stripped-back love song filled with wholesome lyrics and oodles of “do do do do”s. Shifting rapidly to the chaotic, heavy, repetitive punk-like track “This Room Is Caving In On Me”.
The penultimate track on the record is a relaxed and authentic track questioning the meaning of life. A cooldown from the whiplash of the first 11 songs, “Turning Pages” is a contemplative track with the phrase “Life, oh life, what’s it all for” repeated throughout. The gentle strings in the background, partnered with the acoustic guitar and Abraham’s forlorn tone, come together beautifully on what might be the most surprising and touching song on the album.
bilk wrap up their second album with “Band Life Blues” an autobiographical account of their journey that merges classic rock with blues. They layer instrumentals, lyrics and slices of spoken word to enhance the narrative, giving their authentic, unfiltered commentary on their years as a band, warts and all. An appropriate way to end the album, the track is a fitting fusion of bilk’s previous style, and their newer, more flexible approach to music, setting them on a path where they can create what they want, how they want.
Every song on Essex, Drugs, and Rock and Roll has a distinct sound, making it more challenging to see how they fit together as an album. However, when you step back, you can see the pieces slot into place, building the picture of the rapidly growing, crowd-pleasing, dynamic band that is bilk.
Essex, Drugs and Rock and Roll by bilk is out on the 24th of January 2025.