There’s something in the air in Glasgow of late; it’s a fertile pool of guitar-based talent with plenty of energy bubbling away under the surface and Sweaty Palms are the most visceral of the lot. Their name in itself is a reference to those factors – anger, nervous energy, excitement… and today they release their revved-up debut album, Quit Now, a solid template that somehow emits the energy of their chaotic live shows and encompasses their general view of the world with a heavy disdain towards the 21st century’s narcissistic culture, rampant misogyny, prejudice, discrimination and all the other shit that clogs up our United Kingdom.
Instead of a plethora of radio-friendly, ready-made singles, Sweaty Palms wanted to focus on making an album that was more of an experience with a thematic understanding woven throughout every track. From the nihilistic Pretext, through to the black humour of Queer Fatwa and the stark, The Liquid Hall, there’s a collection of soundscapes that veer from your sold indie rock into weirder, darker territory, with synth leads and spacious arrangements perhaps pointing to the band’s future intentions.
Dork Magazine have hailed it as a ‘stonker of a debut’, which ‘establishes Sweaty Palms as one of the most exciting garage rock prospects around’. We’re probably going to have to agree, there.
You can listen to the album on all good streaming services here.