Liverpool has spent the last 60 years priding itself for its strong string of residents-turned-musicians, and in 2024, it seems The Mysterines are fit to carry the torch. The four-piece rock band made a splash in 2022 with debut full-length Reeling, recently toured with fellow British behemoths Arctic Monkeys, and now are bursting back on the scene ahead of June 7, when their sophomore effort Afraid of Tomorrows is set to hit Spotify libraries and record store shelves alike. Today (April 8), they’re continuing a preview of the album with their latest single “Sink Ya Teeth” by way of Fiction Records, a follow up to February’s “Stray.”
In true Mysterines fashion, the track primarily features jagged, punk-informed guitar, punctuated by a steady beat. Vocalist Lia Metcalfe shines, her performance easily countering the otherwise intimidatingly powerful instrumental layers. Metcalfe says that “‘Sink Ya Teeth’ is a testament to the brutality of real love,” going on to explain that it was “written during a time where the boundaries of pain and passion were warped amidst the chaos of addiction and desire.”
The lofty thematic goals of the lyrics fit perfectly within the high-octane sonic environment the band creates, and evidently are just the tip of the conceptual iceberg.
“Afraid of Tomorrows is a mirror,” Metcalfe adds, “where you find you’re nothing more than a formless being, one made from celestial constellations — of traumas, of the old and new, mistakes, addiction, fear and happiness, loneliness, but ultimately a desire for life and the fight to keep living. It’s a collage of what’s been lost and of love unbounded.”
While The Mysterines are hitting the road in the UK and Europe for much of the upcoming year, including a big gig opening Bloc Party’s 20th anniversary show in July, no North American plans have been revealed yet. In the meantime, whet that Liverpudlian rock appetite with a big bite of “Sink Ya Teeth” below.