Dishes (Amsterdam & Leiden, the Netherlands) are a deeply political punk band, yet sound surprisingly bright and melodic on their debut album Drama. Sure, there’s a sense of melancholy and weariness to the ten songs, and sure, they deal with heavy topics, both large (power, displacement, injustice, and solidarity) and small and deeply personal (mental health, sexual misconduct). These people are activists at heart, and their intentions are as real and honest as the songs on Drama.

Subroutine Records, who are releasing the record, dub the sound of Dishes as “driving, anthemic and wistful indie power pop punk,” and I can get behind that. Dishes are a deeply melodic band, with all of its members chiming in vocally and instrumentally. This is not a cut-and-paste ’90s throwback band, but a band that very much tries and succeeds in carving their own niche. And Shireen’s voice is the thread connecting it all, turning activism into songs that hit you in the gut and stick in your head.

LP out now on Subroutine Records.

Add to wantlist: Bandcamp || Subroutine