The second album from Unqualified Nurse Band, and the tenth release from Reckless Yes, Trashland is now out and you can get your ears around it digitally or on limited edition 12″ vinyl.
The album scored a solid 9/10 from Louder Than War as well as a glowing review in Loud & Quiet and play on Amazing Radio among other praise. The band start a UK tour tonight, supporting ska punks Lightyear on their 20th Anniversary tour and playing venues including King Tut’s and The Garage.
The prolificacy of Unqualified Nurse Band never fails to astound us at Reckless Yes – not just the speed at which the three-piece works but how fully-formed this quick fire pieces arrive. They aren’t just churning out simple garage rock tracks but are thinking about the evolution of their sound, challenging themselves and working without constraints on where their influences come from.
Trashland fits into the timeline of Unqualified Nurse Band, building on the deconstruction of rock n roll that started with the trigger set by debut EP Dilemma Blues, the explosion of first album Debasement Tapes, and the burn of double-A single Death Surf A52 / White Dove. The latest release takes the twisted remains and begins to build again, putting the pieces back together in surprising ways – sometimes disorientating ways – but remains a considered way of connecting genres that were previously separated by time and sound.
The band have also thought about the format – what does an album mean in the digital age after all – and embraced the concept and flow of the album as a piece to be listened to as one. Kept tight in track number and overall length the record has, in the band’s words, a cinematic structure. It certainly has mastered pace and build overall while within each song you get the rise and drop of influences from ’60s girl groups to ’90s grunge via prog, new wave, punk and pop without ever making a mess.
This is the first release we’ve split on – the band have set up their own label Medicine Music – and while Unqualified Nurse Band could certainly have cracked on and released under their own steam we’re honoured to be able to stay involved and show our support for the band, as well as what should be considered one of the best albums this year.
Trashland is available now on all the usual streaming and download platforms and you can get it from Bandcamp where you can also order it on vinyl. If you’ve not got the band’s debut album Debasement Tapes on gorgeous translucent red vinyl then you can get it from our online shop here or look out for bundles and merch deals from the band at their gigs.
Unqualified Nurse Band support ska punks Lightyear on their 20th Anniversary / comeback tour around the UK. You can see them:
- 20 October – Hairy Dog, Derby
- 21 October – The Garage, London
- 22 October – King Tut’s, Glasgow
- 23 October – ThinkTank, Newcastle
- 24 October – Thekla, Bristol
- 25 October – Cellar Bar, Stafford
- 26 October – Joiners, Southampton
- 27 October – Zephyr Lounge, Leamington Spa
- 28 October – The Haunt, Brighton.
