Every once in a while a label pops up that completely defines a sound, and sometimes even an era. The Sixties had the golden sounds of Motown, the Eighties had the shimmering weirdness of 4AD, and the Nineties was the heyday of perhaps the stickiest, fuzziest label of all time: Sub Pop. From conception in 1986 the label cemented its place in musical history, releasing record after recording of the greatest loser rock the world has ever heard. However, in recent times the label has lost some of its identity as its diversified into admittedly interesting terrain with noise hop (Clippng) and choral soul (Father John Misty). While these groups are great, the label has been crying out for a bit more rawk. This is where So Pitted come into the equation.

Neo, the Seattle group’s debut, is as painfully Sub Pop as it gets, and it’s painful in a wonderful, wonderful way. Every single ‘classic’ SubPop ingredient is there: Location? Check. Big Muffed to fuck guitars? Check. Lackadaisical groans? Check. Apocalyptic drumming? Well you get the picture. It’s all there. It’s almost as if they’ve been held back in the record label warehouse until the world needed most noise. A secret weapon plucked right out of 1989 and plonked into the Tens, or whatever the kids are calling this decade.

‘Woe’ kicks things of with the swivelliest bass of the year so far and drums more harmful than a five-day-hangover. It’s heavy stuff. Heavier than the heart of a lovesick man, one might say. Immediately it’s clear that this group are exactly what Sub Pop have been missing from their ever expanding arsenal in recent years.

Like all of the best slacker punk/noise rock/grunge pop (take your pick) Neo bombs along without a care in the gosh darn world. ‘No Nuke County’ and ‘The Sickness’ kick you in the face with their arse-whupping riffs and driving bass. Actually, that’s something that could be said about the whole record. So Pitted are built on a solid foundation of thrashy basslines, and that’s no bad thing. In fact, these basslines are probably what set the group apart from the musical pack in 2016.

While all the rest of the guitar freaks focus on dropping out like it’s 1967, So Pitted take a different route to enlightenment. Not through their lyrics or anything, because, to be honest, this group are much more about the tunes and the words, but through their primal, scrappy rock and roll that scrapes all optimism from your soul until you just don’t care about anything anymore. ‘Rot In Hell’ is pure feeling music. It’s not for the cerebral guys and gals of the world. It is music for the weirdos and the losers, the types who sit alone watching cat videos on YouTube on a Friday night with a few beers because nightclubs just weren’t made for them. And after all, isn’t this what Sub pop should be all about?

So Pitted certainly thing so, and to be honest. I’m with them. Now where’s my Red Stripe? I have some kitten Tumblrs to chuckle at.