New music! yay! Starts First Kick. Two lovely lads from lovely Meath.  Comprised of Robert and Gordon McAuley, Starts First Kick are a band for those who want high-octane, occasionally spacey rock with rich production. On the 1st of January, the boyrahs released their debut two track album, “You Hold On, I’ll Hold On To Mary”, and more is on the way over the course of the year if all goes to plan.

It ticks a lot of boxes in terms of what I like. We get to hear one instrumental track and one with vocals. Usually I’m not a massive fan of instrumental tracks. I think that bands often lose the run of themselves when writing them. I totally get it though, and I have been involved in writing instrumental songs. It’s easier than writing words and you can pretend you’re a rock god. I don’t think this is one of those cases, although there is plenty of space for rock god role play. “Everything Covered” is tight, energetic and knows where it’s going. It’s one for the lads, a headbanger with some lovely aggro exclamations. “Massive Momentum”, on the other hand, is what the band refer to as “for all of you pop divas out there”. There’s all ya could want there, bit of call and response, sing-a-long chorus and more guitar and drums general badass-ery.

I’m a big fan of the lads and I think they’re doing it right. There’s instrument swapping between the tracks and they’re both super involved in making music which is great to see. If you like the stuff ya can click here for more stuff by Rob and here for more stuff by Gordon. “You Hold On, I’ll Hold On To Mary” is a solid way to start the year in new music and I’ll be looking forward to what comes next from Starts First Kick.