Bad Cop/Bad Cop’s debut album is the sound of four feisty California girls channelling their passion and surroundings into their music. ‘Not Sorry’ is a fun record that is steeped in the history they are now a part of.
‘Like, Seriously?’ sums up this feeling with its confident, almost defiant, chorus of, “We’re gonna be taken seriously…we’re already part of punk history”. There’s nothing bratty or flag-waving about it. Jennie, Linh, Myra and Stacey avoid the trappings of early 90s rrriot girl politics and turn more to the decade’s straight-forward bouncy punk.
Choppy, pogo chord riffs flesh out the majority of the songs. ‘Nightmare’ (for which a low-fi, slightly gross, video was produced), ‘Sugarcane’ and ‘Anti-Love’ are all short bursts of mid-tempo punk that have been injected with Golden State sunshine.
That’s not to say it’s all happy-clappy stuff. Lyrically, there’s some no-nonsense venom on display. ‘Sugarcane’ tells the story of watching a friend in an abusive relationship and standing up for them, saying, “I’d use a fucking hammer on his face, yes I would do that for her”. It’s sung with a genuine but gentle bite.
Jennie and Stacey take lead guitar and vocal duties with gusto. They hold notes and harmonise well, particularly when Linh backs them up to form a trio. It’s less Bratmobile and more Breeders. They even throw in some classic California ‘woahs’ that would give NOFX a run for their money.
Fat Mike’s influence on Bad Cop/Bad Cop is also evident. He signed them to Fat Wreck Chords himself and Stacey sang on his ‘Home Street Home’ concept album. ‘I’m Alright’ has the girls entering dub/reggae territory sounds like a response to NOFX’s ‘Eat the Meek’.
‘Not Sorry’ is built on the foundations of West Coast pop-punk as seen through the eyes of four head-strong women. It doesn’t re-invent the genre and doesn’t try to. It just does it well. It’s not a perfect record by any means but Bad Cop/Bad Cop have created a fun debut album that sets a terrific marker for their future. If they can build on this with the next few releases, they’ll go shoulder to shoulder with the heavyweights.
ASHLEY PARTRIDGE