Don’t let the title fool you.
Smile And Wave opens Cancel Me (I’m Tired) like a wrecking ball, with droning keys and pummelling drums, until frontman Joe Love starts sounding like Count Dracula. It lands somewhere near Beastie Boys’ Sabotage, and that’s a compliment.
Go Fuck URself is ’80s synth built for a therapeutic group singalong.
The title track is the one to learn. Partly inspired by John Lennon’s How Do You Sleep?, Cancel Me (I’m Tired) is hyper industrial techno that sits between The Presets and Hot Chip, with Love daring the room: “If you wanna cancel me/Then go ahead and do it, please.” Then the octave jumps without warning. The South London seven-piece pull the same trick again at the tail end of Snakes, and it works twice.
Heart Of Darkness drops the tempo and side-steps along on a melodica line, proof this band can turn it down. Shit Love cranks it straight back up, with twisted synths, drums that won’t quit and Love yelling “Cookin’ with gas!” at someone he suspects is “just tryna finish me”.
Snakes arrives on strummed guitar and a lonesome whistle fit for a spaghetti western. Closer Aliens builds from emotive piano, sax and pensive strings.
Bad Dog is the peak. Synth stabs escalate, Love shouts over cacophonous percussion and the whole thing sounds like a high-speed chase you joined off your face.
Fat Dog play Meredith on 11 December, which has sold out, then headline 170 Russell on 12 December.
Cancel Me (I’m Tired) is out now via Domino.
For more information, head here.
