DITZ

Previous praise for DITZ:

“A terrific debut album” CLASH 9/10

“All told, The Great Regression is about as strong as debut records get. Channelling all of its rage, sarcasm and scorn into a taut, well-honed package it’s both a brutal assault on the senses and a window into the raw talent and unique worldview that makes Ditz one of the most interesting bands on the current UK punk scene..” Loud & Quiet

“The English punks’ debut is a rage-forward bulldozer of poetic wordplay and experimental hardcore.” Pitchfork 7.3

“This album has a sense of urgency and visceral intensity, and DITZ rarely bore with their snotty, twisted, and deadly playing.” Pop Matters

DITZ are back! Today they announce their new album Never Exhale out 24th January 2025 via Republic Of Music/Domino Publishing, as well as new single ‘Space/Smile’. They also share details of a huge EU/UK tour to take place next year.

Never Exhale is the sound of a band that’s never slowed down. With themes around unnecessary hatred and division, personal demons, politics, and what it would be like to weigh up your impact on the world, more reveal themselves on further listens.

Following debut The Great Regression released in 2022, it’s a document of what the 5-piece have been up to since, as well as where they were when writing and rehearsing the record, mostly between touring. DITZ made use of borrowed rehearsal spaces, sometimes donated by the bands they played with the night before - they even ended up debuting a newly written song live the next night. The plan was to record Never Exhale in a more traditional setting, but was abandoned when they were offered a support tour with IDLES.

‘Space/Smile’ is a compact first taste of the record, where vocalist C.A. Francis (they/them) says, "I feel like Space/Smile is pretty unique within the album. It’s the shortest track by a fair margin. We’ve kind of become known for using dynamic shifts to create drama in our music and with this track we tried to avoid it. It’s all about the escalation."

t could be said that the band treat recording and release of music as an afterthought. Often playing songs live years before their release, tweaking them as they go. The songs on the final record may change before they are ever heard as part of the album.

C.A. continues on the new album, "Never exhale feels like a logical step from The Great Regression. It’s a document of what we’ve been up to and where we’ve been as we wrote and rehearsed the majority of the album on off days between touring. Making use borrowed rehearsal spaces, sometimes donated by the bands we played with the night before. After that we’d probably debut the newly written song the next night"

It was largely recorded at Holy Mountain studios in London during a freezing cold January, but the process was fraught with obstacles due to touring. They still managed to get the album mixed by the originally intended engineer, Seth Manchester (Model/Actriz, Lingua Ignota, Big Brave), and the result is a record hardened by the pressure of its own making. Laboured but not loved.

Sonically the album has its roots in the usual DITZ influences, classic noise rock such as The Jesus Lizard or Shellac, or the obtuse post punk of the Fall, but also brings in fresh influences. The closing track ‘Britney’ could be compared to Radiohead or Mogwai. Overall, the album is a clear development from their first effort. A sign of things to come.

DITZ are:

C.A. Francis (Vocals) - they/them
Anton Mocock (Guitar) - he/him
Sam Evans (Drums) - he/him
Jack Looker (Guitar) - he/him
Caleb Remnant (Bass) - him/him

About DITZ

‘Never Exhale’ is the sound of a band that hasn’t stopped for a breath. DITZ have toured relentlessly since the release of their first album ‘The Great Regression’ and even before that, travelling at least 100 days a year since COVID. The songs that form their newest offering were written across Europe, often on off days and in borrowed rehearsal rooms just to break up the long drives.

It could be said that the band treat recording and release of music as an afterthought. Often playing songs live years before their release, tweaking them as they go. The songs on the final record may change before they are ever heard as part of the album.

‘Never Exhale’ was largely recorded at Holy Mountain studios in London during a freezing cold January. The process was fraught with obstacles. The original plan, to go and record in Rhode Island, was abandoned when DITZ were offered a support tour with IDLES, although the album was still mixed by the originally intended engineer, Seth Manchester (Model/Actriz, Lingua Ignota, Big Brave). The result is an album hardened by the pressure of its own making. Laboured but not loved.

The album themes reveal themselves more on further listens. The opening gambit ‘Taxi Man’ is an exploration into what it would be like to weigh up your impact of the world. The eponymous taxi man could be seen as a St Peter type figure, or like Charon, ferrying the dead into the underworld.

Further on the album explores themes of unnecessary hatred and division, ‘Space/Smile’ and ‘It smells like something died in here’, aging, ‘Senor Siniestro’ and the separation of the physical from reality, ‘The Body As A Structure’. It’s political, but ultimately personal. More Genet or Kafka than Orwell or Huxley.

Sonically the album has its roots in the usual DITZ influences, classic noise rock such as The Jesus Lizard or Shellac, or the obtuse post punk of the Fall, but also brings in fresh influences. The closing track ‘Britney’ could be compared to Radiohead or Mogwai. Overall, the album is a clear development from their first effort. A sign of things to come.