You have to admit, Dutch hardcore punk bands has been going really strong since a long time ago. Dozens of great bands have been building a strong scene out of many different local scenes and it’s always a great pleasure to see some of them still carrying the torch. After 2 EPs in 2014 and 2015, Middelburg’s band RITES returns with a new, punk rock infused, highly energetic 7” EP called ‘Misery Is Company’, and we’re stoked to give you its first hearing below, along with a track-by-track breakdown! The EP comes out on November 3rd via Cult Culture (UK) and Smithsfoodgroup DIY (EU). Dig it!
The band’s frontwoman Louisa commented:
I’m a pure optimist and always try to see the positive things in life, but RITES is a place where I can finally be angry about stuff. It gives me the opportunity to share my discontent about certain people and the world in general. Our previous EP ‘Inner Plagues’ was more about the way the world effects us and our mental attitude, while ‘Misery Is Company’ is more about how we effect the world.
Listen to the full record and check out the first-hand track-by-track commentary below.
In a way this song is about the wrongdoing that mankind brings to the world. Think about the how we treat animals and nature, but also discrimination and how people justify their actions with their religion. It says; if you look away instead of speaking up, all the wrong is going to catch up with you and will swallow you whole. In the end it’s up to you to make a difference.
These lyrics describe an inner battle. There’s a choice between a person that pushes you down with negativity and a person that has a positive outlook on life. It’s about challenging yourself to give something new a chance and escaping that negative cycle.
Think about a bunch of evil kids that you see in horror movies. Like the kids in Stanger Things except they’re not the good guys. They weren’t born this way, but were made like this by society/the people they love. It’s not their fault, but they’re still pretty nasty.
Strangely enough this is the only somewhat positive song on the record and it became the title track. We bring a lot of bad shit to the world, but also a lot of good stuff. It doesn’t have to be a person that can wake you up, but it can also be an experience that makes you feel worthwhile. Sometimes misery is company.
This song is a bit twisted. It’s about hanging on to something toxic. You know it’s going to destroy you. but you also kind of like that.
Rites is a five piece hardcorepunk band from the south of the the Netherlands. They play high energetic hardcore songs with a punkrock-twist. Their first Ep was released on Brainwreck Records in February 2014. Second EP ‘Inner Plagues’ saw the light in September 2015 and is released on LTD-records (UK) and SmithsFoodGroup DIY (NL). It features guestvocals by Corey Swift of Kids Insane and Jeroen Moerdijk of Run Like Hell.
Sharing stages with bands like Reagan Youth, H20, Slapshot, Such Gold, John Coffey, Siberian Meat Grinder, No Turning Back, All For Nothing and Wolf down, the band started to make quite a new in the scene.
Rites is influenced by bands like Strike Anywhere, Bane, Cruel Hand, Paint It Black, The Distillers, Cro-Mags and Dag Nasty. Within these influences Rites have proven themselves as a unique and authentic band.
RITES November tour dates in support of the EP (GO HERE to get more details):
