With their first album as Soft Play, Isaac Holman and Laurie Vincent have flipped a switch. Having ditched their problematic former name and emerged from a hiatus sparked by devastating life events and music industry malaise – Vincent’s partner died of cancer in 2020, while Holman struggled with his mental health, at one point considering quitting the band altogether to become a gardener — ‘Heavy Jelly’ is an attempt to wring the fun out of things again.
No other punk record released in 2024 is going to make you crack up like this one, whether that’s because of the ferocious satire of Punk’s Dead (where they ingeniously rope in Robbie Williams to sing lines like “snowflake, snowflake, cherries on the woke cake”) or the scattergun brilliance of Bin Juice Disaster, which is about exactly what you think it’s about.
Eschewing their previous indie-tinged approach in favour of a noisier sound, Soft Play seem to have unearthed their truest selves here.
The motorised riffs of Mirror Muscles lend an edge of jagged machismo to its playful lyrics about getting jacked in the gym, while Isaac Is Typing…’s indelible swagger belies the hurt captured when the titular vocalist was at his lowest.
Sonically, it’s diverse enough so the end of one track doesn’t feel smudged into the start of another, but inventiveness seems low on their list of priorities until the very end.
Closer Everything And Nothing is a ballad wearing a black dress and a smile, its bright chords adding a sweetness that makes it easier to swallow the pain in Holman’s scratchy vocals as he half-screams his struggles. It’s a beautiful end to a formidable comeback record.
Soft Play Upcoming Tour Dates are as follows
Tue October 15 2024 - BRIGHTON Brighton Dome
Wed October 16 2024 - CARDIFF Tramshed
Fri October 18 2024 - BIRMINGHAM O2 Institute
Sat October 19 2024 - BRISTOL O2 Academy Bristol
Sun October 20 2024 - LEEDS O2 Academy Leeds
Tue October 22 2024 - SHEFFIELD Octagon
Wed October 23 2024 - MANCHESTER Manchester Academy
Fri October 25 2024 - LIVERPOOL O2 Academy Liverpool
Sat October 26 2024 - NEWCASTLE UPON TYNE NX
Sun October 27 2024 - GLASGOW Barrowland
Tue October 29 2024 - NOTTINGHAM Rock City
Wed October 30 2024 - NORWICH Nick Rayns LCR
Thu October 31 2024 - LONDON O2 Academy Brixton
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