Bugman: The Proto Push
CD/DL/Streaming
Out now!
The prolific North Shields post-punk-pop alchemist hits new heights with his best album yet.
There’s nothing more frustrating than hearing older music fans complaining that new music isn’t as good as the supposed glory years of the ‘60s and ‘70s. There are many grassroots live music hotspots around the UK and one such is North Shields, situated near the mouth of the river Tyne, just north of Newcastle. Ryan Siddall AKA Bugman has long been a mainstay of the local music scene, but over the last year or two, Siddall has kicked things up a notch, delivering sensational live performances and continuing to record and release albums at a rate that would shame Ty Segall or Oh Sees. Siddall’s blistering punk-rock rhythm guitar playing invites comparisons with both Graham Coxon and Wilko Johnson, while his trademark lyrical style – witty, insightful and at times gloriously daft, has echoes of Beck, Mark E. Smith or even Captain Beefheart, with Siddall delighting in wordplay, juxtaposition and local references.
It’s a mystery why Bugman has not broken through to BBC Radio 6 Music yet; punk legend Mike Watt (Minutemen, fIREHOSE, Dos, The Stooges) is a fan and recently interviewed Siddall for his podcast. It’s hard to think of a higher endorsement, and surely it’s only a matter of time before the Stooge king himself, Iggy Pop, turns the spotlight on Bugman’s gloriously life-affirming post-punk-pop gems. For the uninitiated, The Proto Push is a perfect entry point to the sprawling Bugman back catalogue. The album opens with the sensational one-two punch of the cleverly-titled Selfie Schtick and Vantage, the former showcasing Siddell’s gift for marrying irresistible melodic hooks to indelible lyrics, while Vantage is an instant punk rock earworm that references Newcastle’s famous Dog Leap Stairs and the Great North Run, its extended coda providing a refrain that could almost be a Bugman mission statement: “How does this sound? Like a starting pistol!”
Third track Majorca starts reflectively and builds to a pulsating, near-anthemic climax, while the superb On The Ladder features the deathless lyric ,”I took the brains out of Icarus and put them inside Lazarus; it’s the kind of thing that I do”, over a churning guitar and electronica backing that sounds like Ty Segall channelling Space Ritual-era Hawkwind. Oh, and then there’s the Gregorian chanting that bookends the track, adding the weird icing to a song that’s sure to be a highlight of upcoming Bugman live sets.
A seasoned multi-instrumentalist, Siddall plays all the instruments on this self-produced album, but recent live shows in ‘Bug-band’ mode have found Siddall and drummer Steve Allen kicking out the jams as the most exciting punk rock duo you’re likely to hear this side of The White Stripes. On current form, you can only feel pity for any act who has to follow Bugman on stage.
Sufferin Succotash finds Bugman edging into early ’80s punk-funk territory, with a dash of Gang of Four and crunching bass reminiscent of The Stranglers’ bass icon, Jean-Jacques Burnel, while the near-instrumental The Gap is yet another super-catchy gem that evokes Brix Smith-era Fall. Siddall’s quality control is strictly enforced across the album’s 12 tracks, with no hint of mid-album sag on the slide-guitar powered Giddy Up, the gorgeous, balmy Harpies and the dance-inflected Ignorant of Atmosphere. Too Late Now finds us back in Fall/Hawkwind territory, driven by a nagging two-chord riff that quickly burrows into the listener’s brain, demanding to be played at ear-bleed volume.
The Proto Push concludes as it started, with another killer one-two combination punch; the freakbeat frug of Gone Fishing conjuring a fever dream of Can playing The Cavern in ’66 before the 5 minute Mirtazipine Glow finds Siddall surfing off into the sunset on the crest of a blissfully euphoric melodic wave. Undoubtedly one of the best albums released this year, The Proto Push will delight fans of witty, intelligent post-punk laced with irresistible melodies.
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Bugman is on Facebook and Bandcamp.
All words by Gus Ironside, 2024. More writing by Gus can be found here.
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