BERRIES

One of the jewels in the crown of their highly-anticipated s/t album, BERRIES today cut ‘Jagged Routine’ as their latest single from the record.

With the hazy days of summer now a distant memory and the daily grind of work/school an all-too vivid reality, ‘Jagged Routine’ is a song for anyone out there struggling with life’s routines.

As BERRIES say of the track:

“It’s about the need for variety, and unpredictability, so that no two days, weeks, months or years are the same. The idea that not having a repetitive schedule, or a rhythm of doing things is generally seen as a negative thing and the song invites you to challenge this notion. It prompts people to reflect on why their way of living is deemed superior to those who take a different approach. It acknowledges that not everyone is the same; while some thrive with structure, others flourish in freedom. It advocates for those people who are told how to live, or why they must live a certain way, when the reality is, it doesn’t work for them. Ultimately, “Jagged Routine” is about the beauty of unpredictability and for some people the most authentic way to live is to embrace the jagged edges of non-routines.”

With a score that veers and lurches with wild abandon, ‘Jagged Routine’s non-conformist sentiments are adeptly complemented by savage riffs and searing solo breaks aplenty. Far from a routine outing for the trio, this electrifying new single is one of the immense highlights of their forthcoming new album ‘BERRIES’.

The new single will feature alongside the previously released Louder Than War hailed ‘Watching Wax’ and the recent BBC6 Music supported ‘Balance’. Further praise for the recent singles comes from Radio X’s John Kennedy who declared the band are “Sounding fantastic” and has booked them for a session on 19th October.

The album - cited as one of Record Collector’s ‘Upcoming Releases’ -  is due for release on 18th October via the Xtra Mile Recordings label.

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As its eponymous title makes clear, ‘BERRIES’, is the sound of a band determined to make a statement with their second full-length outing. While the band have never shied away from brutally honest admissions or difficult subject matters like struggles with mental health, ‘BERRIES’ finds them weaponising them into a set of fearlessly assertive tracks that seize strength from darkness. As BERRIES explain:

“This album is about battling intrusive thoughts and finding contentment in your day, however big or small those moments are. It’s a journey to finding your own space and being comfortable in it. We haven’t held back with this album – it's raw, honest, and a true reflection of BERRIES.”

Teaming up with production legend Adrian Bushby (Foo Fighters, Muse, Everything Everything), who took on mixing duties for the record, listeners will almost certainly feel that turbo-boost coursing through the veins of BERRIES 2.0.

And between Riot Grrrl-esque discordance and thunderous grunge-rock anthems ripe for the big rooms, ‘BERRIES’ also finds a band spreading their wings with sonic explorations into shapeshifting math-rock (as on opener “Barricade”), epic post-rock nods (on closer “Crumpled Clothes”), through shades of Power-Pop (as on the infectious “Narrow Tracks”), and even tender, unadorned acoustica (as on “Balance”). Reflecting on making ‘BERRIES’, the band add:

“We really pushed ourselves creatively and out of our comfort zone, especially with the acoustic track and working with mixing engineer Adrian Bushby. We’re super proud of what we’ve written and created.”

Following a spate of recent shows road-testing new material in support of punk/rock legends the likes of The Subways, Skinny Lister, Feeder, and Sleeper, plus Newcastle noiseniks The Pale White, BERRIES are now ready to take their latest work out on the road for a series of headline dates of their own.

BERRIES are a jagged rock trio made up of Holly Carter, Lauren Cooper and Lexi Clark. Winding off-kilter garage rock melodies around uplifting messages about what it takes to overcome mental health battles, the band released their debut album in 2022, ‘How We Function’, to glowing reviews. Gaining praise from the likes of Record Collector, The List and The Crack, the album was awarded four out of five stars by Louder Than War who dubbed it “a really well put together debut album that rocks hard and gets its message across succinctly, with a bristling beat and an intelligence that it takes some bands a few albums to achieve”. The band also delivered an exhilarating Radio X Session on John Kennedy’s show plus Steve Lamacq featured ‘Balance’ on his 6 Music Show this week. Setting fervent expectations for its follow-up, BERRIES have returned to the Xtra Mile Recordings label for the release of their eponymous second album, ‘BERRIES’, which will arrive on 18 October 2024.