Although exactly what we have come to expect from this genre over the last few years, its political message forces it to stand out from the crowd.
British indie rockers VANT have been going steadily over the last year, supporting the likes of Royal Blood, Biffy Clyro, and Catfish And The Bottlemen as well as playing Bestival, Reading, and Leeds festivals, and latest effort ‘Peace & Love’ highlights the small differences that really make them stand out. It is easy to see why they are currently supporting You Me At Six as it casts a similar style to what the alternative rockers have become famous for. The recent indie rock influx has also had an obvious influence – vocalist Mattie Vant’s voice shares that edgy rasp that is ever present among the powerhouses of this genre (Peace et. al.) as well as the overbearing drum and guitar mix being fairly stereotypical.
And yes, it is frustrating that there are such strong similarities to You Me At Six’s ‘Lived A Lie,’ however what ‘Peace & Love’ does so well is punch a strong political message. Vant explains that in the wake of the recent Paris terror attacks, “We live on a planet that has forgotten what the words ‘Peace & Love’ mean… [we]need to reconnect with their true meaning.” In a way, its lyrics (“We need peace and love, all you motherfuckers”) do indeed achieve that, albeit in a bold and crass way. Then again, I’m a sucker for any artist that can actually provide true meaning to the words they sing. Even though there is nothing here that hasn’t been seen a thousand times before, I cannot help but love fall in love with this song. There is just something about VANT’s mix of hard guitar riffs and edgy vocals that can do no wrong.
‘Peace & Love’ is out now via Parlophone
