Hull’s finest bdrmm have finally released their long awaited follow up album to their 2020 debut record – ‘I Don’t Know’ via Rock Action Records.
The album comes after a strong critical response from the band’s debut which grabbed the attention of Clash Magazine, NME, Steve Lamacq and Lauren Laverne; and it’s safe to say that its follow up has lived up to its hype.
What makes this album so exciting is that the group have refused to stick to the same formulas that made the debut so great – don’t get me wrong the debut was one of my albums of 2020 yet many artists make the mistake of trying to replicate their success within their second album and it never usually works out. Despite this, bdrmm have bought a fresh new wave of influences and inspirations to the table to make something that feels fresh and exciting, but still true to the bdrmm aesthetic that we’ve come to know and love. The best example of this would be the album’s opener ‘Alps’, blending dance synthesizers & beats with ambient shoegaze. Its exciting feats like this which turn the record into more of an experience than a simple consumption, the same can be said when extended to tracks such as ‘Advertisement One’ too which is a great showcase of the groups development.
At the same time of course, the vital heart of this record is bdrmm themselves – when speaking on the albums creation Ryan Smith discussed how he was still “writing from a personal perspective” but as a result of post-pandemic life is now more “wide ranging and universal”. A great example of a ‘classic’ shoegaze track on the record is first single ‘It’s Only A Bit of Blood’ which is just wall to wall enthusiasm and enjoyment. The album comes in at just over 40 mins long with 8 tracks, so it’s a healthy length and makes for a beautiful enjoyment.
The album draws to a poignant close with ‘A Final Movement’ with its beautiful, heart touching lyrics – I must admit that this is probably one of my favorite album closers of this year so far. Its safe to say that second album syndrome is not a worry for bdrmm!
‘I Don’t Know’ is out now on Rock Action Records, go and give it a listen!