The Trudy – Dear Sancho (2021)
With over 40 years experience as a post-punk group, The Trudy has been sharing their Joy Division meets The Cure sound with the masses. Formed in 1979, the UK-based trio exploded onto the scene with their debut album Volcano Fo Lé Ferret. With a strong underground following, they released more original material before dissolving in 1996 with each member going their separate ways. Yet, The Trudy was not to be deterred as they returned from hiatus in 2006 bring old-school sounds to new listeners.
Since 2006, Melissa Jo Heathcote, Peter Tagg and Del Tagg have built a critically acclaimed discography beginning with their debut album in 1980. Featured on Edgar Allen Poets, Louder Than War, Unpeeled and several online radio stations, The Trudy show no signs of letting up. We present you with the latest from their repertoire, ‘Dear Sancho’.
Describe by Unpeeled as “the best pop-pushing machine since Squeeze”, The Trudy have an upbeat, high-powered and energetic sound. ‘Dear Sancho’ only continues the trio’s pop-pushing ways with a dynamic post-punk influence. Combining psychedelic guitars and pounding drums, ‘Dear Sancho’ plunges you into a hypnotic whirlpool of music. A kaleidoscopic soundscape, the track is beguiling, mystifying and fills you with a sense of comfortable chaos.
Inspired by the tale of Don Quixote and “his everyman squire, Sancho Panza”, ‘Dear Sancho’ is a provocative and evocative single. Using harmonic melodies with powerful crescendos, The Trudy showcase an ebb and flow in thought, concept and sound. It is as if you are travelling along a river of turmoil with turbulent waves representing the vulnerability, confusion and mad ideals of the protagonists. Thing is, the melody does tell of Don Quixote and Sancho Panza’s ill-fated end, but the journey teeters on the cusp of sailing adrift to calming shores or drowning beneath the brooding water.
What I love about ‘Dear Sancho’ is the merging of rich, warm comfort and haunting melancholy. Melissa Jo Heathcote’s tender vocals are breathtaking making the single robust with a lingering sincerity. I had not heard about The Trudy before now, but it’s clear to see their music is boundary-breaking and should not be pigeon-holed.
For more from The Trudy, check out their official website, Twitter and Spotify.
