Blazing out of the blocks with two & half minutes of pure power pop Ash made their traditional ‘ Ash Wednesday’ return with ‘ Cocoon’ the first single from their forthcoming studio album ‘ Kablammo!’on the ear MUSIC label “ It’s Ash at their frenetic best” says drummer Rick Mc Murray “A wall of guitars & a shot of adrenaline with a sweet melodic chaser” A clear statement of intent ‘ Cocoon’ picked up immediate radio support from BBC 6 Music & XFM & served as a bold introduction to their forthcoming album It’s been eight years since ‘ Twilight Of The Innocents’ the album Ash vowed would be their last The ensuing years saw the band embark on the ambitious A-Z singles series & its accompanying A-Z tour taking them from Aldershot to Zennor The decision to put the album format to one side allowed Ash to explore a different dynamic to their sound across 26 tracks released over a year “A-Z was a great exercise in creativity & we stand by our choice to do it but we still love the album format Stepping away from it for eight years has given us a new found love for the format & it&s been really exciting to get back to thinking about music in that way again” On ‘ Kablammo!’ they set out to capture the live essence of Ash the closest sonic predecessor being 2004&s & Meltdown& they say with the songwriting of the & Free All Angels& singles “ We&ve stripped away the electronic overtones of the A-Z series & made a streamlined blazing guitar record” “ On every song you can hear what makes this band tick our beating (atomic) heart It&s a visceral expression of what has driven us since 1992 Passion melody & Ash” The title itself – ‘ Kablammo!’
- sums up the excitement Ash felt “to be in a room together making new music You can hear that on every song” & this renewed enthusiasm for playing together is writ large over the album’s 12 tracks the ‘in your face’ quality” which has made Ash one of the UK’s best -loved bands ‘ Free’ & ‘ Moondust’ provide two of the album’s most anthemic moments “ In the pool of half remembered dreams” Tim Wheeler laments on ‘ Free’ “ How long have I been submerged in sleep?” his soaring falsetto echoing above an impatient chug of guitars a cry to cutting loose replete with an achingly emotive guitar solo ‘ Moondust’ captivates hearts with sweet pattering keys & the mournful grace of a string section building to a mighty crescendo Wheeler’s star -gazing broken heart lifted to the skies “ When you come home will you stay for good?” It’s not all sky-high calls & midnight falls ‘ Shutdown’ takes us back to the trio’s roots Its scrappy teenage punk spirit sprinting hand in hand with a sweet ‘90s nostalgia & a three-line chorus destined to raise your pint into the air Elsewhere ‘ Dispatch’ rides a college rock wave Wah-oos & guitar dips that explode into a head-crashing power-chord shred all the while bumping up to hooks so big we’re singing along before we know all the words “ We&ve finally bridged the gap between our live show & the recording” the band say “ Kablammo!’ is the proof” Ash will showcase songs from ‘ Kablammo!’ at live dates & festivals this summer