Album Review: Drunk Mums - Urban Cowboy

The charm of Drunk Mums has always lain in their raucous live shows and their no-holds-barred ethos. Every album since their inception a few years back has been a hands-on affair and Urban Cowboy is of course no different, pieced together by the four Melbourne misfits in their committed and carefree way. Solid touring in between albums has sharpened some of the rough edges off their frenzied guitars and general arrangements, but the same rambunctious chaos still remains. 

Gritty swagger is what Urban Cowboy dishes up from opening single Phantom Limb to its closer Ripper. Bookended by these gems, the rest of the album doesn’t falter with punk and the odd moment of respite in the form of lo-fi rock sandwiched in between. Hellfire revs things up from the get-go with low bass and vocal wailing, Order From Chaos dips into dissonant, punchy riffs, and the midway title track itself cashes in on the reference and saunters along with some jagged guitars and reverb-drenched vocals. There’s plenty of juice in the back end too to keep this Drunk Mums beast on the road, Borderline is all pouty sass and Asthmatic takes a chill pill and cruises along with simple strums and sparse lines.