New HC Bands

New Hardcore Band Spotlight: Aku

Photo: Jon Sugden / @reprievevision

Band: Aku
From: Brighton and Hove, UK


Their formation story:
(Jake Morgan, guitar): "All of us were playing in different bands at the time we started this. Negative Measures, Dozy, and Couples Therapy were all already playing together, and we'd all became friends through being in those bands. It all really kicked off with a few tunes written for fun and a beer heavy conversation at the last show of Jack’s old band, Negative Measures.

"We finished off some of those early demos shortly after and used them to convince our other friends - mostly involved in the emo/hardcore-adjacent scene at the time - to jump in."

Their sound in their own words:
"Hardcore Punk. These are the bands we enjoy the most to see live in hardcore and it's also the vibe we're after but I think ultimately the goal is simply just to sound and be a fun band you can dance to with ya mates. A lot of the influences come from the current new wave of hardcore bands like GEL, Jivebomb, SPY, BIB… Mostly bands with 3 letter names, of course.

"But I also remember listening to a lot of power violence and grindcore at the time and I wouldn't be surprised if those influcences make a big return as we approach our next release."

Latest release info:
"Numbers Game! Out now on all streaming services, released by our friend Oscar over at Burning Water Records. It was recorded and mixed all by us in a bedroom and a practice space and mastered by Alessandro over a Tidal Wave. 8 tunes, crazy cool art, and dope tapes made over at Burning Water."

Future plans:
"We're already sat on some new songs, figuring out what our next release is. Until then, play lots of shows and get out of town a little more while we figure out how much of a power violence band we want to turn into over the next year…"

What other bands from their region should we check out?
"The bar is so high in Brighton these days and it's always met - feels like there is a new band every week and every time, they're the new best band in Brighton. To name a few of the bands we really love on the scene right now then we gotta shout out Infinite Wisdom, The Swamp, Blood Gutter, and Exhume."

Numbers Game is available on cassette via Burning Water Records.
Aku on social media:
Instagram
 

Tagged: aku