Dragged Up: Hex Domestic EP

On the face of it, Glasgow’s Dragged Up seem like your band’s band. A humble collective going about their business in no frills fashion, which has seen them support the likes of Loop, The Unit Ama, No Age, and basically any band worth their salt who has rolled through the North East since Dragged Up’s inception in 2018.

Consisting of members from Trembling Bells, Vom, The Owsley Sunshine and Las Mitras, Dragged Up is Lisa Jones (vocals / percussion Eva Gnatiuk (guitar/ vocals), Chas Lalli (bass), Simon Shaw (guitar/ vocals) and Stephen Mors (drums).

Having first appeared on many people’s radar in 2020 on the back of their debut release, D/U, a skewed, Goo-era Sonic Youth kind of vibe, and coupled with some Ron Asheton-like fuzz that slowly dripped from the speakers, it was the band’s off-kilter sense of humour that proved their key drawcard. I mean, come on, it’s hard to swerve a band who parts with a lyric like “Voodoo Queen of the school canteen” (Voodoo Tabard).

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On their follow-up release, the Hex Domestic EP, the five-piece continue by putting their best foot forward, creating the kind of slacker sounds that cure hangovers. Songs that combat fumbling through pitch-black hallways consumed by A.M dread with sleepy harmonies and a scuzzed out an alt-rock aesthetic that teleports you back to your youth.

From a personal point of view, the ’90s contained many bands like Dragged Up back home in Australia. But instead of being exploited by major labels looking for a quick buck, the whole thing has gone full circle; the likes of Dragged Up now the last line of defence and a vital component of the DIY machine. The kind of band that would flit between playing shows in coffee shops and pubs and pleasing both crowds in equal measure.

“The kids ’round here are weird/ Try not to look them in eye” sings Jones on the eponymous opening track, which feels slightly connected to the aforementioned Voodoo Tabard – a fuzzy rumble of sing-speak harmonies that are essentially alt-rock’s bricks and mortar.

Inspired by the psych country twang of ’70s obscure crate-digging folk, alongside some sing-speak trade-offs between Jones and Gnatiuk, Fairytale in the Super Arcadia unravels with the down-in-the-doldrums fleapit aura of Goat Girl.

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And while Hurricane is a track born out of a couple of years down a Mudhoney rabbit hole, Blaming the Weather finishes Hex Domestic with a lovely spoken-word passage evocative of Glasgow’s rich twee-pop heritage. Here though, Dragged Up intersect this idea with the more interesting aspects of post-rock, resulting in an off-kilter majesty that will serve them well in the future.  

While still wearing their influences on their sleeve, Dragged Up’s Hex Domestic EP is a steady progression from D/U. A coalition of oddball sonics with each member bringing something completely different to the table, and the result is an interesting concoction of ideas from a band that is essential to any DIY scene up and down the country.

Hex Domestic is out Friday via Cruel Nature Records. Purchase from Bandcamp.