With a ragged, full-throttle urgency pulsing through “go,” the debut single from Irish rock outfit adequate, hits like a runaway freight train with sparks flying off the rails. Hailing from Wexford, the self-described “smelly Wexford grungers” channel the grit of alternative rock’s golden age while injecting enough raw adrenaline to make the whole thing feel fresh rather than nostalgic. Drawing influence from heavyweights like Pearl Jam, Deftones, Faith No More, Led Zeppelin, Black Sabbath, and Radiohead, adequate don’t merely wear their inspirations on their sleeves — they tear the sleeves off entirely and dive headfirst into the chaos.
What makes the story even wilder is the band’s creative process. Despite having already written a full album, the members still haven’t been in the same room together, instead swapping ideas remotely between Wexford, Waterford, and Kildare. “go” still sounds colossal, as though it was forged in a sweaty underground rehearsal room shaking from feedback and cigarette smoke. Recorded at Orchard Recording Studio with producer Brendan Carthy, the single has that rough-edged largeness many modern rock records spend fortunes trying to fake.
From the jump, “go” wastes no time kicking the door off its hinges. Grinding, shredding guitars slash through the mix while the drums pound with bruising intensity. Then comes the vocal performance, completely feral, untamed, frenetic and gloriously reckless. The lead singer snarls, spits, and scathes like a man exorcising something ugly from his chest. Meanwhile, a deeper secondary voice anchors the chaos through the hypnotic refrain, “Here we go.”
The result is explosive but strangely focused, like every jagged edge was meant to land exactly where it does. For a first single, “go” sounds like a warning shot.
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Review by: Naomi Joan