British alternative artist SICKY is back with some righteous fun and groove on his new single ‘A Bite Without A Mark’, a welcome slice of his thickly layered sophomore album ‘Garbage Town’, following up earlier singles ‘Garbage Town’ and ‘The Bridge’.
SICKY is the solo project of Mick Butler, his brand of melodic Britpop-infused indie rock spells good news for fans of Beck, Supergrass and early Blur. Originally from the Black Country region of England, he is now based in Shropshire.He explains, “A Bite Without a Mark is a song about the figures you don’t see in the dark world out there – the guys who pull the strings from a secure and safe distance, not having to deal with the heartbreak and chaos of real lives being crushed. This is a song about manipulation, control, the easing of people in a certain direction with a premeditated plan to make a buck long in place. Not a happy tune!”
Having played in various bands, ranging from the brass soaked pop of Papa Mantra to the dirty stomp of SUMO, now Mick Butler derives pleasure from banging out tunes and crafting new material. Literally everything you hear in his music is him squeezing noises out of anything that’ll sing.
“Garbage Town is not a place – it’s a state of mind. The lyrics talk of breaking free and leaving all the bad stuff in your head behind. Feels like all roads have led to this album. I play and record/produce everything myself so I’m a bit like a decathlete… Quite good at a couple of things and pretty average at the rest. Hopefully it sounds like in your face dirty pop,” says SICKY.
“The album continues the theme of shaking off dark days and making better things happen. It also includes songs that are just quirky bits of pop fun. Hopefully the album sounds uplifting despite some of the imagery.”
The new album is slated for release a year on from his lockdown album ‘Bowling Balls’, a collection that was partially inspired by Ray Bradbury‘s book ‘The Martian Chronicles’. This music is inspired by Prince and Bowie, perhaps in equal measure, as well as Nirvana, Supergrass, Blur, Queens Of The Stone Age, Fun Lovin’ Criminals and Elvis.
As of October 26, ‘A Bite Without A Mark’ will be available across all good digital platforms, including via Spotify, Apple Music and Bandcamp, where the full ‘Garbage Town’ LP (out November 18) can already be pre-ordered.
CREDITS
Written by Mick Butler (SICKY)
Recorded, mixed and produced by SICKY in Shropshire
Mastering by Streaky at Streaky Mastering
Written & recorded in January 2022. Mixed in July 2022
Artist photo by Helen Marshall
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