Jul 9, 20202 min read

Single preview: Twist Helix 'Frida Kahlo'

Newcastle's Twist Helix are a band that have only recently come onto my radar. I've been listening for a few weeks now and I absolutely adore this band and their energy!

Their new single 'Frida Kahlo' drops tomorrow and having had a listen, you lot are in for a treat.

Bea Garcia's passion is so visceral it's jumps out and slaps you for around the chops - think Ari Up from The Slits, cranked up to eleven. Add to that gargantuan synths that would make Chvrches proud, then add the perfect bass and drumming that never overtake the song. They offer the perfect platform to carry its message and energy.

The production on this track is absolutely stunning; making the sound so gargantuan it hits you right in the feels. Put it this way, if Bea Garcia's voice is the emotion in this track, then James Walker drums and Matthew Barron's bass are the arms that wrap themselves around you. The synths then pick you up and swing you around, making you feel alive!

Dropping in and out of English and Spanish, you don't even notice first listen because you're being swept along on the wave of this emotionally charged, punk fused, synth stoked, anthem.

"'Frida Kahlo’ is a song about identity. How in an online world we self fashion an image

of ourselves by referencing popular culture and art, telling people what we like, who we

follow, what we wish to be, in a manner akin to the tradition of self-portraits. Named for

the Mexican visual artist Frida Kahlo (an artist renowned for her challenging self portraits), the track is not so much about Frida herself but how the mass consumption of images deviates from a true understanding of the self in favour of the popular, current, now", the band said in their press release about the track.

Having discovered Twist Helix through this track, I've gone back and listened to their earlier releases. I'm a Geordie living near Manchester and having listened to, then watched the video for their single 'Newcastle', I have to admit I was a little misty eyed watching this.

I've included that in this review, so you can see for yourself just how brilliant and versatile this band is.

Twist Helix are planning to release their second album later this year, and in releasing 'Frida Kahlo' now they've set barre high. Their press release also said that they're about to release their most extensive piece of work to date and posed the question, 'Who's in'?

Me. Definitely me! You can pre-save Frida Kahlo via this link

10/10 - Prodigious!