EP 4: Black Ends

We’ve loved Black Ends for years, at least since 2019, when Stranger music writer Dave Segal caught them at Chop Suey and declared the band’s guitarist/vocalist Nicolle Swims had a "Chrissie Hynde-esque" voice and wrote songs that “gently skew in a manner reminiscent of obscure, women-dominated groups such as Quix*o*tic and Oh-OK.” High praise, tbh. Quix*o*tic fucking rules! Black Ends have only gotten better with time. About their 2024 record, Psychotic Spew, The Stranger’s Pop Loser columnist Audrey Vann recently wrote, “The local trio continues to shape their self-invented ‘gunk pop’ genre, employing catchy pop hooks, metal guitar riffs, and funk basslines. The result sounds like the musical offspring of the Pretenders, Suburban Lawns, ESG, and No Doubt (yes, Gwen Stefani’s ska band) in the coolest possible way.” Listen in and love them, too.

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