Listen: The Durries - We Build Schools EP
Probably the first and last time you’ll hear ‘emphysema rock,’ used to describe a genre.
This EP while conceptual is meant to be a piss-take. And while the band hasn’t directly stated this it’s clear once you realise every song is named after a cigarette brand. Just take the lyrics of their single Malboro Gold, “Mate, there’s nothing with I’d rather kill myself with than a Malboro Gold,” which was banned from Triple J for promoting a commercial entity. Which seems hypocritical when Mac DeMarco’s track Viceroy is played constantly on Triple J and it’s about a cigarette brand. But that isn’t the point when listening to The Durries as they seemingly tread the path of irony and a personal joke gone too far. There are moments where The Durries shine through like Port Royal with its Nick Cave-esque vocals. But the real oddity on the EP is the closing 7-minute epic Winnie Blues which shifts from 12-bar blues to heavily indebtting itself to Pink Floyd’s Breathe. All in all, it's a humurous affair that works best in short, sharp bursts, so might we suggest a one-ciggie-break-per-song method of listening.
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