Little Bastard

Little Bastard are the type of band to have a gun pulled on them after live shows. The bluegrass-pop seven-piece—named after the cursed racecar that killed James Dean—are notoriously ferocious on stage.

While their performances may make you want to dirty your denim, spit whiskey at a cop, kiss your cousin, then light a grassfire and watch it burn—the debut record seems rather smooth in comparison.

This isn’t necessarily a criticism; the live energy is largely maintained on the self-titled release, but is now supported by a depth and elegance of sound that the band haven’t previously offered.

By their own admission, the members of Little Bastard are much better musicians now than when they began playing together in sticky Sydney bars two years ago.

First single ‘High For You’ is a rollicking, tambourine-laced foot-stomper. The track’s on-the-road video provides an insight into the band’s smoke-it-if-you-got-it kind of attitude.

Lyrically, most of the songs rest on familiar (sometimes overly so) country-meets-rock ‘n’ roll laurels, with occasional threads of darkness.

An interesting juncture is forthcoming single ‘Be My Kind’. The track summons a bygone Australian pop aesthetic, at least vocally. Frontman Johnny Took croons as the band whispers a meditative, “Could you be my kind?” which would sound perfectly comfortable sandwiched between INXS and Hunters on Rage in 1987. But instead of a glorious sax solo, a lash of quivering harmonica cuts in and we prance back into bluegrass territory.

The rather solid debut presents better musicianship, tighter harmonies, and a richness we haven’t before seen from Little Bastard, which, one would think, is much more palatable to the wider audience they deserve.

Watch the clip for ‘High For You’ from Little Bastard here: