UK band Shambolics release new single ‘Universal Credit’ – and we are obsessed!

Shambolic’s album Dreams, Schemes & Young Teams is out on Friday, February 16,2024

With the release of their debut album ‘Dreams, Schemes & Young Teams’ due this Friday, Fife’s next wave indie rock quintet Shambolics provide a final taste of what to expect as they share the new ‘Trainspotting’ inspired video for their single ‘Universal Credit’.

 

ROCK AT NIGHT SAYS: We love the “Trainspotting” inspired video–old PC, telephone, ‘Blue Scotland’ stickers and the ‘Spud’ character sitting in the chair chatting with the conservative interviewer.  The song’s melodic chorus, “I don’t need no money…I want to be happier than you” will have you humming all day. The message, the song, the video–a total banger. Our new favorite band!

 

The video sees co-frontman Darren Forbes and Lewis McDonald reinventing a memorable scene from the film via the prism of their own life experience. Lewis plays a benefits officer exasperated by Darren’s desire to make the band the focus of his life rather than capitulating to the demands of the universal credit system before the track’s soaring hook defiantly declares, “I don’t need no money, I want to be happier than you.” And when in real life the band regularly enjoys “Up the Shams!” chants at gigs, it’s hard to deny that their attitude is the wrong one.

Darren explains the story behind the song: “Two of us were on the dole when we were in the middle of making the about. They started putting us on a full-time course on how to get a job and build a CV, and we would beg them, just give us a bit of time, we’re nearly there with the band. So eventually we got chucked off it!

 This song is a storyline of the meetings we’d have in these dole offices during the making of the album. We wrote it as a complete pisstake one night and took it into the studio the next day. We thought it would be a funny bonus track, but decided let’s just release it for a laugh. We’ve accepted we’re not exactly the industry standard. As long as we keep cracking on and folk are digging the tunes and turning up to the gigs then that’s all that matters.”

Shambolics have also released another ‘Trainspotting’ style visual with the ‘Choose Shambolics’ album teaser: “Choose touring up and down the country playing every venue and praying that some corporate bastard is going to pick you up and make all your dreams come true.”

Choose Shambolics. Choose ‘Dreams, Schemes & Young Teams’. Choose to pre-order the album HERE today. Choose red ned vinyl. Choose a CD. Choose a cassette. Choose a football shirt / album bundle and benefit the Kirkcaldy Foodbank while you’re at it.

Shambolics will celebrate the release of the album with three intimate shows in Scotland which all sold-out within a day as well as an in-store tour with Assai Records. They will then play Glasgow in March as special guests to Cast ahead of a tour in England in April and they are also confirmed to hit The Great Escape in May. Their upcoming dates are below, please see HERE for remaining tickets.

 TOUR

FEBRUARY

16th – Glasgow, Assai Records (6pm)

17th – Dunfermline, PJ Molloys (SOLD OUT)

18th – Dundee, Assai Records (1pm)

18th – Edinburgh, Assai Records (5pm)

19th – Edinburgh, Sneaky Pete’s (SOLD OUT)

22nd – Glasgow, McChuills (SOLD OUT)

MARCH

11th – Glasgow, SWG3 (special guests to Cast)

APRIL

11th – Manchester, Lion’s Den

12th – Sheffield, Sidney & Matilda (basement)

13th – Liverpool, Future Yard

18th – Leeds, Lending Room

19th – London, Two Palms

20th – Newcastle, Xerox

 

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