Brighton trio Dream Wife, who last year headlined one of NME’s Girls To The Front gigs – showcases for female and non-binary artists – have never taken anyone’s shit, and they’re not about to start now. Their stellar self-titled 2018 debut album was stuffed with feminist punk anthems and Rakel Mjöll (vocals), Alice Go (guitar) and Bella Podpadec (bass) have delivered an outspoken, subversive follow-up.
‘Sports!’ is an urgent and adrenaline-fuelled song, layered with many different meanings and dripping with sarcasm. The song is an ode to the time the band spent together while writing this record, expelling some of their post-tour energy after spending nearly two years shouting and playing crashing guitars on stages across the world. It’s a playful track full of sport clichés, as Mjöll sings “put your eye on the ball when it’s in your court”, with the song exploring the sexist trope of male condescension in sport. “Do you even play this sport?” she asks ironically.
The song’s hook sees her repeat “put your money where your mouth is” – and Dream Wife certainly do that. The band have been outspoken about the gender inequalities in the music industry and wider world since their inception, and worked with an all-female recording team for ‘So When You Gonna..’., including producer and mixer Marta Salogni (who’s helmed projects from Björk, Holly Herndon and FKA Twigs).
The team of womxn who supported this album can be heard throughout the record – it just sounds organic and comfortable. “It was amazing to work with this community of womxn who are supporting each other in an industry that is so male-dominated, bassist Bella Podpadec has said in a statement. “It was a way of us practicing what we preach.”
-NME
Tracklist
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