A healthy portion of revolutionary Punk Roots Rock’n’Roll with added fun from Headsticks.

Release Date: 3rd June 2025

Label: FOAD Music

Format: digital / CD

What exactly then is the best thing on TV (or The Best Thing On TV)?

BEAUTIFULLY BLEAK

“A heady, hearty cocktail of fury, folk, and full-blown theatrical angst,” according to the Headsticks website. And while we’re shamelessly nicking a few quotes, we’re also told how their new set is “a beautifully bleak stroll through our collective apocalypse, delivered with a grin, a groan, and a guitar solo.” Job done really.

Perhaps in the old days, when the LP was king (and there is a vinyl option for The Best Thing On TV), a band like Queen might have opted to divide their album into dark and light, black and white sides to keep the heavier and more fragile tunes separate. Fragile might not be the type of word you’d associate with Headsticks. They unashamedly sing their messages with the devotion of religious fervour more often than not accompanied by a powerful and no nonsense Punk inspired soundtrack. Smack bang in the middle of the ballpark where you’ll find players such as The Clash, The Levs, Ferocious Dog and Sham 69.

RIFFS TO DIE FOR

The fury is evident from the off. Pantomime gives fair warning with the first of a handful of riffs to die for. Despite the fire and fury has its very own “oh no it isn’t…oh yes it is” comedic pause point. It’s typical of the venom Headsticks spit in Keyboard Warriors, yet toss in the line “I don’t own a winter’s coat, and it’s getting bloody cold!” Maybe a line that was just too good not to include somewhere. One of those little punctuation points that crop up now and again that bring a wry smile to the force of their messages.

CHATTING WITH THE MAIN MAN

Meanwhile, there are thoughts on how a chat with God might progress. God/he/she speaks some sense and shows the nouse of the common man but of course it’s all a dream. As they say in Ashes, the observations are as sharp as a double-edged sword from a band who aren’t afraid of lapsing into some tirades laced with pertinentAnglo-Saxon vernacular. The “world outside the window” line may be subconsciously lifted from Band Aid on Don’t Spoil The Apocalypse (which is, incidentally, the inspiration for the album title); the most chilling of thoughts as said apocalypse plays out before us.

Even when the electric power is put on pause for the acoustic alternative, the passion remains the same. It’s the ideal forum for the melancholy vibe of On Top Of The World, and having said that, There’s No One Left is softened with the brass and additional vocal from Esther Brennan and a more considered arrangement. The “No one left to...” repetition ensures a poignancy amidst the bluster. A song worthy of those socially conscious folk rockers we admire so much, Merry Hell. Dark Waters is cut from similar cloth; impending end of the world visions with not even St George to come to the rescue.

PARSNIPS…

The irreverence comes to a peak via the grand finale with There’s A Parsnip On The Pool Table. A fun and frolicking funk workout that pays tribute to “the two biggest smiles in Manchester.” Sobering thoughts parked for a short while, and a smart move to end on a lighter note.

A grand bunch of lads whose love for music is what makes the world go round. And perhaps a Why I Love on what Headsticks think really is ‘the best thing on TV’ might be a question worth seeking an answer for…watch this space.

Here’s Dark Waters:

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