PINCH POINTS SHARE "HARUSPEX" WITH NME
Posted on March 8th, 2022
[as seen on NME]
Melbourne outfit Pinch Points have shared a new single titled ‘Haruspex’, released today (March 8) to commemorate this year’s International Women’s Day (IWD).
A driving, bass-heavy punk number with biting riot grrrl influence, the track marks an apt release for IWD with its sharp feminist angle, singers Acacia Coates and Isabella Orsini (who double as the band’s bassist and drummer, respectively) quipping fiercely on the patriarchal power dynamics that continue to oppress women in modern societies.
“We are frustrated by the long-enduring issues of gendered violence towards women, trans and gender diverse communities,” the band said in a press statement, “usually at the hands of men. We’re sick of seeing the same headlines, the same apologia for ‘promising young men’, the same lack of empathy from our elected leaders.
“There’s a small riff on a line from Iggy Pop’s ‘I’m Bored’, when we say, ‘We scare ourselves to sleep at night, Scare ourselves in broad daylight,’ twisting that familiar line into something more sinister from a non-male perspective (made even more sinister by the fact that lots of the old rockstars of this ilk have shady reputations when it comes to their relations with women…)”.
Touching on the new song’s title, the band explained: “In ancient Rome, a haruspex would read omens in the organs of slaughtered animals. The conversation around gendered violence is just as brutal and repetitive. We see the same warning signs and issues around violence repeat again and again, and our governments and society aren’t taking enough measures to prevent them.”
‘Haruspex’ comes as the third song shared from Pinch Point’s forthcoming second album, ‘Process’, following ‘Am I Okay?’ and ‘Reasons To Be Anxious’. Following up on 2019’s ‘Moving Parts’, the album is due out on March 18 via Mistletone.
‘Process’ was produced by Anna Laverty, and sees the band exploring themes around systemic issues in so-called Australia – including bushfires, gendered violence, mental health struggles, the incarceration of First Nations peoples and deaths in custody.
NME recently featured ‘Process’ on its list of top Australian releases for March, with writer Alex Gallagher saying: “Pinch Points don’t fuck around. The rising Melbourne four-piece’s incendiary second album situates their forthright, socially-guided songwriting – pulling apart overlapping structures of consumerism, systemic inequality and mental illness – with frankness and empathy in equal measure.
“It’s anchored by the band’s bouncy, locked-in post-punk and a direct vocal delivery that borders on sprechgesang, altogether resulting in a record that’s as thrillingly fun as it is razor-sharp.”
Pinch Points will launch ‘Process’ at a hometown show at Melbourne’s Corner Hotel on Saturday April 2, with support coming from MOD CON, Alien Nosejob and Our Carlson. Tickets are on sale now via the venue.
Have a listen to ‘Haruspex’ below: