Sydney's Toy Saints sink their teeth firmly into 90s tones on post-grunge debut single, 'You Would Know'
Sydney’s Toy Saints have their feet firmly planted in 90s alt rock territory with their debut single, ‘You Would Know’ - an energetic and grungy track reminiscent of 90s alternative radio. Evoking the likes of Third Eye Blind, Fastball and Everclear in their sound, Toy Saints capture a sense of nostalgia with this debut single, while simultaneously serving up something fresh and exciting with such a modern take on the style.
The result is comparable to the sounds of bands like TOWNS, LOSER, Basement or Title Fight.
Recently rebranding from their previous project name of Elliott Road, Toy Saints are stepping into this new era with a bang, and the new track executes so beautifully its role of introducing the band to the world in all their shiny new glory. The soundscape of ‘You Would Know’ is characterised by a stunning combination of silvery, angelic backing vocals as well as gritty, chanting ones, growling guitars, heavy percussion and a whole lot of head-banging energy.
Though citing 90s alt-rock acts Third Eye Blind, Fastball and Everclear as influences, ‘You Would Know’s thickened tones bring to mind the post-grunge approach of Bush, blended with the quirkiness of Scottish trio Biffy Clyro (particularly in their ‘Blackened Sky’ era), yet there’s plenty of home sounds creeping through. The balance between the tense, frustration-driven vocals, backed by walls of guitar, and the playful, almost teasing chorus of ‘You Would Know’ is brilliantly hooky; it’s joyfully bleak with plenty of grunt that’s not over the top.
Thematically, the single is defined by its own self-consciousness– the lyrics drip with anxiety, and there is a sense of uncertainty in everything the narrator thinks and speaks: “Ventured so far / but so little to show”, “I had a thought / And now it’s gone”. The choral backing vocals, in that case, which repeat the words “You would know” over and over again as a chanting response to the narrator, double down on the anxiety, bringing in an outside source to worsen the inner tensions.
“You Would Know was one of the first demos written for the new incarnation of Toy Saints. We were playing around with new tunings and getting new inspiration from heavier artists. This song is really all about the details. It feels simple when you listen to it but when you break it there’s more to it. Little time signature changes and stops and starts. We never really picked apart this track too much because it was strong from its inception.” - TOY SAINTS
After working tirelessly to perfect a showcase that captures the energy and excitement of their fresh new tracks, Toy Saints will be playing a launch show in Caringbah NSW next month to celebrate the beginning of the band’s new era!
The debut single from Toy Saints, ‘You Would Know’ is out now on all streaming platforms.
