
KOOL ROCK RADIO Exclusive Premiere: Swallow the Rat “Terra Nullius”
Auckland, New Zealand indie rock/post punk/psych band Swallow the Rat have shared their new single “Terra Nullius” and it’s accompanying video.
The track is out tomorrow, July 21 and is the lead single of their upcoming sophomore album ‘South Locust‘, set to arrive on September 1st via Shifting Sounds. Pre-order your copy here.
Following from last year’s 7” teaser “Other Rooms” and emerging post pandemic as a reinvigorated three piece, Swallow the Rat (guitarist Brian Purington, drummer/vocalist Hayden Fritchley, bassist/vocalist Stephen Horsley) return with “South Locust”, with a new dual vocal attack, voices now soar, growl or reassure, while the stripped down format provides for more space and dynamics.
Speaking about “Terra Nullius”, they say:
“Song is in two halves, musically and lyrically.
My family came here back in the 1850s, and basically purchased through dishonest means a huge amount of land off Maori, the indigenous people here. As a result my family has done pretty well over the past 170 years, including myself. I also work a corporate job doing contracts, and I suppose it deals with the fact that I’m uncomfortable with both these things- checking my privilege somehow?
Second half moves to Tulsa where we played in 2020. A strange place, with the trail of tears ending up there, the 1921 race massacre- we played just round the corner from where that happened. Echoes the discomfort I feel in the first half.
Last bit is a funny story that happened while we were there. Our friend Major took us to what he said was the shittiest bar in Tulsa, and it didn’t disappoint. Walked in there at midday and everyone is fucked. David Allan Coe on the jukebox. Our singer at the time got talking to this old drunk. The drunk said to him, “what’s your name”. He replied “Sam”. The drunk then said- “what’s my name?” Sam said- “I don’t know” The drunk then growled at him “that’s right”, hilarious and terrifying all at once. We finished our shitty beers and got the fuck outta there.“
Check out the song and the video below.