EP Review: Now We Know Who to Blame

Wellington’s Solo Ono are currently operating as a trio, with guitarist/singer Frank Eggleton (Tidal Rave, Echo Beach, Kittentank) and drummer Jordan Stewart (Pleasant Surprise) now joined by bassist Birgit Bachler. It has been two years since their last EP Rogue Planet, which was released as a duo, and these three songs were all partially written that same year, being completed during the 2020 NZ lockdown. They were recorded and mixed by Warwick Donald in Newtown in late 2020 and capture a band who are very inspired by both the garage scene and the music coming out of places like CBGB’s in the Seventies.

One can really imagine them playing in venues like that, as the punky indie vocals are incredibly reminiscent of a time gone by, but somehow, they manage to bring hooks into the grungy downplayed sounds. There is a freshness on the chorus of second song I’ll Have A Double which breaks through the cloying guitars, and even the repetitive slightly out of tune guitar solo definitely has a place. If The Ramones were playing at a slower tempo and mixed it up with The Stooges and some psychedelic bands then one can imagine them coming across like this.

This is indie rock with its feet firmly planted in the Seventies, yet also looking back to the Sixties and forwards to the Nineties to create something which is still relevant today. If the Pistols had dropped some of the vitriol then one can imagine them playing the final song, Since You’ve Got it All Figured Out. This is an interesting set, and let’s hope we don’t have to wait another two years for the next one.