The debut full-length by Los Angeles trio Moaning is an alarmingly focused set of tense, bitter post-punk tunes born from years of busted relationships and emotional distress.

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Loud and Quiet

Moaning’s most impressive achievement on their self-titled debut LP is stamping their own authority on abrasive post-punk and frantic anthems for a frazzled youth.

Northern Transmissions

‘Moaning’ is the sound of three individuals feeling their way through these uncertain times with an album that’s kept on a short leash.

Their first offering accomplishes what it sets out to in a way post-punk fans fearing stagnation will appreciate. As old favourites veer off in new directions or the intensity of their output fades, young newcomers like Moaning are a welcome addition to the genre.

When a record makes you feel, it’s pretty spectacular. ‘Moaning’ is a record that not only does that, but captures an entire generation’s angst and fears into one devastating bottle, finding the best way out of the dark is to scream in its face.

On most tracks, loud choruses and quiet verses and bridges abound, but this lack of subtlety on the dynamics front is paralleled by frontman Sean Solomon’s knack for hooks.

Moaning show flashes of brilliance on their debut full-length. Ultimately however, they’re let down by a lack of dynamism, drowned in their own fuzz and an absence of ideas.

For every aspect of Moaning’s sound, you’re immediately put in mind of a band who’ve recently done it better.

Their precarious perch - straddling the ridge that separates shoegaze from post-punk - results in too many of their melodies and hooks being suffocated by the sheer density of the walls of noise that Moaning are all too happy to build.