A new indie rock band from the historic heart of Hamburg, Germany, Fake Plastic have recently shared their self-titled debut album, a ten-track collection “built on the spirit of rebellion and transcend the worlds of imagination, poetry, and passion.”
Exuding pure indie rock attitude, the album is an impressive introduction to the band, working on the band’s ethos of ‘All killer, no filler’ to keep you hanging on until the very last note. Opening with ‘Stop Drinking’, the band waste little time in making themselves known, delivering a chaotic rally of fierce guitar work and tight, scratching vocals. It’s a dense melee of clashing sounds that fight to form the inner melody, arriving at a sound that shifts between early garage rock vibes and distinct sounds of The Clash. At the album progresses to ‘How I Learned to Let Go’, Fake Plastic reinforce that raw, acoustic sound, chipping away with a heavy bass sound spiked with subtle hand claps and unpolished, authentic style.
Elsewhere on the album, ‘Endless No’ stands tall as a highlight on the album, with the drums taking charge and a darker, melodic edge coming to the surface. One of the album’s strongest songs, it catches you off guard and demands to be played time and time again. Later in the album, with songs like ‘I Shot the Living Zombie’, ‘Coloured Boats’, and ‘I Had Callers’, Fake Plastic work hard to show off their versatility, switching styles and infusing their sound with a range of influences, from pop and soul to heavier blues, rock, and post-punk.
In the closing songs, the album really finds its feet, lashing out with Pavement and Pixies style cuts like ‘Who Stole the Alphabet?’, ‘Lover You Are Down’, and of course, second standout ‘Black Eyed Girl’. It’s a raw and constantly shifting listening experience that the duo has created, giving an intimate and frenetic look into their world.
When sharing the album, the band explained that they “refuse to be tied down to any one musical style,” and their debut album delivers some impressive shades of that spirited ideal. Packed with different influences and styles, Fake Plastic’s debut is enjoyably raw, letting the true appeal and DIY nature of the songs shine through unhindered. Familiar, but effortlessly fun, the album is a keen introduction to the band, and we can’t wait to see what they can deliver next.
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