Company Ink have singed, sealed and delivered on their debut EP Blah Blah. Hailing from Norway, the duo comprising of Daragh P. Wearen and Axel Møller Olsen, fuse pop punk tendencies with fizzing synths and propelling riffs. So it's perhaps no surprise that the EP is out on Propeller Recordings, a label widely known for their work with the likes of Dagny and Sløtface. Here the band take us through Blah Blah, track by track:
‘Blah Blah’
Daragh P. Wearen: For me it’s a mish-mash of 80s pop, hip hop and punk. It’s fairly fast paced and aggressive, but also quite melodic, and intricate at times. We just combined synthesizers and electronic loops with live drums, guitar and bass. It’s definitely the most “poppy” track off of the EP, but it’s got a lot of attitude, I think.
‘No Love’
DPW: It’s a love letter to 80s guitar music and post-punk, that’s really it. I mean, the guitar riff that opens the song for me has New Order written all over it. There are definitely nods to bands like The Cure as well. Particularly the rhythm guitar on the chorus, but it’s for sure a lot punkier, I’d say. It’s like if The Cure were angry, and not sad… Maybe.
‘Young Milk’
DPW: For sure, my attempt at making a proper no bullshit punk song, but sort of failing in a nice way. I really enjoy approaching the guitar like a keyboard like some of my 80s heroes also did, and the arpeggio picking-guitar thing just fitted in really nicely. So, that’s sort of the “poppy” side of the song. There’s also the synth part that kind of came out of nowhere, and was just an attempt to emphasise the lead guitar, but it really works and it sounds pretty badass actually.
‘The Flip’
DPW: This is a weird one for me. I originally sat down and decided to write a synth-pop song. I wanted to make a Pet Shop Boys song, and I didn’t intend for it to be a Company Ink song. It just took on a new life, when I put that idea aside and treated it like a Company Ink song though. I recorded guitars and bass on top of the synth parts I had, and when Axel heard it, he insisted on making the chorus more badass. So, I recorded like ten guitar tracks on the chorus, and I think that did the trick.
