The Unbranded are for the disillusioned, the disconnected, and anyone who needs a reminder that questioning the world is the only way to stay sane. ‘Drainage’, the seminal single from the No Angels HereLP, channels carnage from inside the mind into scuzzed-up grungy, distorted furore, locking into antagonised hooks that meditate on our tendencies to hit the self-destruct button and let the days slip by as we rot behind screens.
Singer and guitarist Kyle Pivarnik started The Unbranded as a solo project, uncertain of where he fit within the rock landscape beyond wanting to create something raw and unfiltered. After teaming up with Marty Landers (drums) and Michael Rose (bass) in Oregon, The Unbranded took shape as a full band, keeping their ethos intact: giving a voice to those alienated by modern existence, just as punk once did for Pivarnik.
Drainage taps into the lo-fi soul of grungy garage punk as a blast from the 90s, a reminder that the malaise remains 30 years on and isn’t likely to be abstracted from the atmosphere any time soon.
If humanity started being honest with itself, what it means to be human is reflected within the existentialism of Drainage, proving that what we perceive as vices are more like crutches, carrying us through the unrelenting agony of modernity.
Every time I need to quash some angst, I know I will return to No Angels Here and it’s vindicating catharsis.
Drainage is now available to stream on all major platforms, including Spotify.
Review by Amelia Vandergast
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