WOMAN WEPT AND THE MODERN RIOT-GRRRL RAGE OF THEIR DEBUT SINGLE ‘SHORT CHANGE’

Missing the female rage of Hole? Searching for that ethereal, Wolf Alice intensity? Craving something a bit grittier from radio tunes? So were we, until Woman Wept released their daring debut single Short Change on Valentines’ Day – an irresistible indie-rock track you’ll instantly fall in love with.

With dynamic influences such as Estrons, Lambrini Girls and Black Honey – whose guitarist Christ Ostler actually produced Short Change – Woman Wept have crafted a debut work that’s evocative, edgy and astonishingly accomplished for such a new band. For over a year, members Sophie, Nallie, Fin and Leo have been making their name and grunge-pop sound known across London’s grassroots venues, and this single release marks an exciting turning point for this punchy, promising group.

The song kicks off with a fuzzy bass foundation, a deep line that hooks onto the melody and establishes an addictive depth. When the whining guitar and steady drums join in, so do the vocals with their hazy, pop-ish reverb – an atmospheric opening. The mood created is electric, by both the sound and the lyrics; with lines like ‘You’ve got an electric touch / There’s something in you / Just charges me right up’, it’s clear that the band’s knack for songwriting is just as natural as their skillful playing.

And the short, snappy verses just highlight the crashing, climactic chorus, wildly rockish and raw. The intense impacts of the guitar and bass elevate the music to a blissfully ballistic soundscape in which the energy never stops flowing. Neither do the vocals, which ooze with an addictive effortlessness, an easy, dangerous quality akin to that of The Last Dinner Party’s frontwoman Abigaille Morris. With the thrashing addition of the drums and their surprise pockets of ripples and runs, the overall sound achieved is magnetic: radio-rock mixed with grungier undertones, similar to Wolf Alice’s angrier work.

The vocalist takes a lazier, skipping route through the second verse, with small manipulations in the melody line and blurry backing vocals. This is seamless, artfully lilting like a smoother Courtney Love but with all the same passion underneath. Once again, the lyrics are rife with illustrative images and packed with bitter rage: ‘You’re holding me over a bridge that you built with matchsticks / Is that a lighter in your hand?’

After a second, smashing chorus, the bridge takes things down a notch, employing only blunt guitar strums and synchronised, singular drum beats. This builds anticipation and amplifies the vocalist’s impressive runs and ironic refrain of ‘my love,’ before the final, climactic chorus hits the spotlight. At this point, every instrument is in at full blast, with some variations in the vocals too; the counter-melody comes to the front of the mix, with angrier, higher, beltier notes crooned out in true riot-grrrl fashion as the addictive instrumentation runs steadily underneath.

For a debut release in particular, Short Change is a triumph. It’s incredibly challenging to establish such a well-rounded sound from the get-go as a grassroots indie-band, yet Woman Wept have well and truly done it. This is a highly exciting new single – what’s next on their journey into the modern indie-rock world? Clearly success.