Dublin-based four piece, Sprints are the latest new act to emerge from the city fast becoming one of the most prolific places for hot new bands. Similarly with the recent success of other locals Fontaines DC, Girl Band & Silverbacks – Sprints are set to be the latest in line ready to burst out of the city.
Their creative process is very much rooted to the everyday goings on around them. And just like a true garage band, write and rehearse in their village home’s back garden shed. Taking things to the next level, they were quick to team up with Girl Band’s Daniel Fox who has been producing them in his studio. Drawing influence from the likes of Sonic Youth, Iggy Pop, Patti Smith, The Strokes and LCD Soundsystem. There is a fun, energetic and retro feel to what they do. But very much sounding as fresh and exciting as their local peers.
Manifesto Single
‘Manifesto’ is the latest single to be released from the rapidly growing Dublin four-piece, and further cements their place as one of Ireland’s most exciting new acts. Sprints’ clarity in what they wanted to achieve stems from needing to orchestrate a sound that would be a fit for lead singer and songwriter Karla’s emotive lyrics, which tackle some brutal issues fearlessly and articulately.
Speaking of ‘Manifesto’, she says: “Manifesto is all about control, and the seeming lack of it we have sometimes – control over our own lives, our own bodies, our own societies. Written during the time of the Repeal the 8th referendum in Ireland, it’s a call for equality. Life can feel like it’s unravelling around you. We see our countries fall in and out of economic crisis. See the homeless crisis worsen by the day. We see the rapid rise of addiction and drug problems, and nothing is being done about it.
Yet when it comes to telling women what they can do with their own bodies, that’s when people (the bigots) step in and show up? It baffled me. Manifesto is about turning your cheek to the critics and bigots and those who judge and doubt. To try shake the shackles of everyday existence and mundanity and go carve your own path. “
EP
Meanwhile, the EP’s other three tracks don’t disappoint. When it drops next year, you’ll be greeted by the unhinged chaos of preceding single; ‘Drones’, ‘Swimming’ a leather-clad BRMC-esque tale of alienation and poverty, and ‘Ashley’ is a philosophical banger dealing with simulation and obsession.
With Nice Swan Records started their relationship with SPRINTS for their second single: the raw, raucous bass-fuelled ‘The Cheek’. It’s a track centred around Karla’s “own experience of sexual assault, unsolicited advances and sexuality as a whole.”
It ushered them into the limelight and they’ve earned acclaim from Steve Lamacq, who put them as his Spotlight Artist, and they landed Next Wave on BBC Radio 1’s Jack Saunders’ indie show. With ATC booking also taking them under their wing last month, this new EP, SPRINTS look set to take the guitar world by storm in coming months.
Moreover, Sprints have already started to build an army of local fans, with their last few shows around Dublin selling out rapidly. The band are now set to unleash their ferocious post-punk to the world. Watch this space.
The full track listing for the EP is as follows:
1. Manifesto
2. Drones
3. Swimming
4. Ashley
Sprints are: Karla Chubb – Lead Singer and songwriter Colm O’Reilly – Guitar Jack Callan – Drums Sam McCann – Bass Guitar