Cardiff-based quintet Panic Shack has released “Gok Wan,” their first new music in two years, a fiercely charged single via Brace Yourself Record. The track, which premiered on BBC 6 Music with Huw Stephens, serves as the first glimpse of their highly anticipated debut album.
The band – comprised of vocalist Sarah Harvey, guitarists Meg Fretwell and Romi Lawrence, bassist Em Smith, and drummer Nick Doherty-Williams – deliver a potent critique of early 2000s body image culture in “Gok Wan.” The track features Harvey’s assertive vocals set against a backdrop of powerful guitar riffs and driving percussion, produced by Ali Chant (known for his work with PJ Harvey, Perfume Genius, and Yard Act).
“Gok Wan” directly confronts the societal pressures exerted on women through the lens of popular television shows from the band’s youth. The accompanying music video, directed by Ren Faulkner with choreography by Lauren Fretwell, provides a stark visual representation of these themes.
Of the track, the band state,
The title ‘Gok Wan’ comes from the show he presented How To Look Good Naked which in all honestly was one of the better shows, in terms of negativity but still obviously had the main focus on women’s bodies. No hate to Gok (Trinny and Susannah didn’t have the same ring to it for a title), it was the time we lived in and through but it was still shit, it still shaped our little teenager minds into this grown up hellscape of constantly focusing on how we look rather than what we do.
Panic Shack has established a strong presence on the live music circuit, having toured and shared stages with notable acts, including Bob Vylan, Soft Play, Orlando Weeks, Los Bitchos, Yard Act, and Lambrini Girls. Their festival appearances include Reading & Leeds, SXSW, Green Man, End of the Road, 6 Music Festival, Truck, 2000 Trees, The Great Escape, and Glastonbury, where MOJO hailed them as “an early candidate for band of the festival.”
The release of “Gok Wan” precedes the band’s “Don’t Quit Your Day Job Tour,” with tickets available now.
