cheerbleederz – (prove me wrong): EP Review

By John Barlass on 3rd September 2025 • ( Leave a comment )

London / Nottingham indie-punk trio cheerbleederz “challenge their detractors and the oppressive systems that conspire against them” with four punchy songs on their new EP, (prove me wrong)

Release Date: 5^th September 2025

Label: Alcopop! Records

Formats: Digital

CHEERBLEEDERZ

London indie-punk trio, cheerbleederz, are: Kathryn Woods (guitar & vocals), Phoebe Cross (drums & vocals) and Sophie MacKenzie (bass & vocals). They formed in London in 2018 and released their debut EP, Faceplant, later that year. The band’s debut album, Even in Jest, was released in the summer of 2022.

Looking back to those tumultuous years, guitarist Kathryn recalls: “Releasing that album was one of our biggest achievements, Full Stop. We’re so proud of it. I think we’ve grown up a lot since then. We’ve moved cities and started different jobs, new relationships and travelled to a lot of different places.”

AN OPEN CHALLENGE…

Bringing things up to date, drummer Phoebe continues: “Our personal lives have had pretty extreme periods of loss and grief, but through all this, you also get extreme feelings of hope and love, acceptance and new-found appreciation. I think we’ve had a tough realization that sometimes things don’t work out how you thought they would, or things happen that you never anticipated. But you keep going anyway because – what choice do you have? We are at the mercy of cosmic forces and there’s nothing you can really control. I’m sure our sadness informed [the songs on this new] record in many ways that we might not be aware of.”

That’s a summary that sets the scene for the four short, punchy songs that comprise (prove me wrong), a collection that the band describe as: “…an open challenge to our detractors and to the oppressive systems that often conspire against us.” And speaking of the EP’s enigmatic title, Kathryn explains: “It’s all about writing music for ourselves and pushing back against expectations other people have of us as a band of three people who aren’t cis men. There’s also the fact that, recording and releasing music together feels like we’ve already beat the odds. We’ve managed to come together and create, despite what’s going on in our personal lives.”

(PROVE ME WRONG)

The EP kicks off with lead single, i deserved better (no caps here, folks…) – a poppy affair with chiming guitar and a solid drum rhythm. The vocals are vivid, and even anguished, as the song reaches the “Barely living out my life, I feel so lonely all the time” refrain. The excellent passenger princess is tight and punchy, with a funky, twangy bassline from Sophie. The vocals are intimate and measured – as befits the intriguing lyrics, which celebrate the dawning of self-determination; a happy, clever message, in a powerful, poppy wrapper!

A slow, sharp, guitar lick and a powerful drumbeat provide the power behind the short-but-strong sleepwalking and, once again, the vocal style – vulnerable, with an underlying tone of frustration – matches the lyrical subject matter. And, I suspect that cheerbleederz have deliberately saved their best until last, as they close this short set with the melodic you got it in for me. Melodic, that is, until we reach the deranged “Psychological hide and seek, searching for your honesty” chorus, when, individually and collectively, the ladies let rip.

(prove me wrong) is an enjoyable EP and cheerbleederz are a band with a lot to say and many engaging ways of saying it. A name to watch…

Listen to passenger princess, a track from the EP, below: