Sep
14
3.32pm

ITCHY // Let’s Go On A Euro Punk Trip


Pop-punk may have a reputation for being drenched in Californian sunshine, but that doesn’t mean that the European bands can’t come and join the party.

Such is the case for German alternative pop-punkers Itchy, who earlier this year released their diverse and dynamic LP All We Know, a refreshing slab of unique punk in what has been an intriguing year of boundary-pushing releases.

Mixing alternative rock with a plethora of other sounds, All We Know covers the musical bases of fans of Primus all the way to Bad Religion who, so as it happens, the band just supported on some select European shows.

“We were a little scared at first, or before the tour started, because of the Bad Religion audience,” says front man Sibbi.

“I mean, mostly older guys who want to see Bad Religion, and who don’t give a damn about if there’s a band opening for them, or who that band is. Because we’ve been to Bad Religion shows as well, in the past, and you don’t really care about who’s opening the night.”

With such a loyal following on their native continent, it comes as a surprise to hear that members of their own punk crowd might not be interested in hearing the contemporary spin that Itchy have to offer on the genre. However, things don’t always seem to be that way, with the band also receiving a great reception alongside Sum 41.

Sum 41 is pretty much the same as our audience. So it’s like an own-show for us. When we go on stage opening for Sum 41 it’s like fully absolute mayhem, and people go crazy from the beginning, which is great because the audience is pretty much the same.”

Supporting such legends of their scene is a worthy reward to reap from All We Know, with the record, like the bands they have played with, serving as an ode to the lost art of kicking image to the curb and being real with the audience.

If we have a topic, like politically, or socially, that we think needs to be addressed, then we do that. But like I said, there’s also nonsense in our life, nonsense topics, so we write about that as well
[SIBBI]

“Lyrically we write about just everything that goes on in our lives…we listen to the news, and we care about stuff. On the other hand, we experience love and hate and happiness and tragedy, like everyone else as well,” says Sibbi.



“We just try to write about what goes on in our lives. If we have a topic, like politically, or socially, that we think needs to be addressed, then we do that. But like I said, there’s also nonsense in our life, nonsense topics, so we write about that as well.”

The same ethos of complete artistic liberation seems to also be applied to how the band approached their compositions musically as well, with Sbbi remarking how the influence of our own home-grown sons Silverchair affected their approach to what material to include on All We Know.

People were always telling them, ‘Oh, you’re not as grunge as on Frogstomp anymore, on the first records’…you evolve…. you find out more about how life works, how the world works. What I was getting at is, no bad comments so far (on the new album), and that blows our minds. The critics, they like it as well…I think we’ve broadened our horizon over the years, in order not to bore ourselves.”

2017 is clearly turning into a career defining year for Itchy, and when posed about bringing their sound down under for the first time, Sibbi said things were looking promising.

“The band Unwritten Law…they wanted to tour Europe with us, and we want to tour Australia with them. That will be the perfect scenario, but that’s just one plan. We really plan to go to Australia and New Zealand as well, and play shows there.”

Just a hint of an impending tour announcement hidden in there? Fingers crossed!

WATCH >


All We Know is out now via Nuclear Blast.

Read our review here.



Latest News

MORE MUST READS >