Bristol based duo Bad Sounds are kicking off 2023 with their fresh new single, “More Than I Can Afford” today with Nettwerk. The painfully relatable is a response to the cost-of-living crisis, currently happening in the UK. Touching on the complex and conflicting feelings, the track shines a light on how things are currently playing out for so many people right now. Listen to it now below.
Bad Sounds adds, “Being poor and living in an expensive city. Plus trying to eat healthy, not trash the environment, buy organic foods, and support local businesses. These are all things that we try really hard to do in our everyday lives, but it kind of feels unattainable to maintain the moral standards we set ourselves. So, we end up feeling really guilty all the time for not being able to live up to that code of ethics every second of every day. This problem has only really been compounded by the ever-increasing financial divide in the UK. Hence ‘I bet a clean conscience costs more than I can afford’. You just end up doing your best and lying to yourself about your shortcomings.”
Self-produced by Bad Sounds, and mixed by Nathan Boddy (Mura Masa, Biig Piig, PinkPantheress), the band have continued to evolve their magic formula, which today, sees them at the top of their game.
In recent times, the colorful world of Bad Sounds has been growing to include an impressive array of collaborations. With features on their last EP ‘Escaping from a Violent Time, Vol.2’ including both New Zealand duo ‘BROODS’ and buzzy emerging artist ‘Ruti’, they have been expanding their sound and hitting new heights.
Outside of their own music, their production and songwriting network flourishes in their purpose-built studio in the Cotswolds. They’ve had their finger on the pulse collaborating with lots of important new acts coming through, including Arlo Parks (co-writing and producing track ‘Bluish’ off her debut album) and others like Rose Gray, Miso Extra, Joey Maxwell, Devon, Max Pope, VC Pines, SOFY and LCYTN.
Since the band first launched back in 2017, they’ve come a long way and it’s not gone unnoticed, both in their sound and in their achievements with their creative and energetic live shows. They have won many hearts at press including support from the likes of Dork, DIY, The Line of Best Fit, Clash, Wonderland, The Guardian and MTV, not to mention a fruitful run at radio with plays from the likes of Jack Saunders, Greg James, Annie Mac at Radio 1 and Shaun Keaveny at BBC 6 Music.
Bad Sounds are the Merrett brothers, Callum & Ewan, who together are a hybrid of interests & influences that have merged together to create a sound in which you hear elements comprising loose record store genres like hip-hop, rock, electronica, and traditional pop, they cite Gorillaz, Beck, Smashing Pumpkins, Madonna and A Tribe Called Quest as makers of some of their favorite records.