Manchester post-punks LIINES are back with a brand new EP and video.
The inappropriately titled 'Always The Same' is taken from the 5-track As Shadows Fall, their debut release for Crackedankles, represents the band's first new music in over two years and their first physical release since 2020.
"There's something comforting about things staying the same, but something frustrating about never quite escaping them," says singer/guitarist Zoe McVeigh. "'Always The Same' sits between the two. Repetition can be reassuring or unsettling, depending on how you look at it. I've always found comfort in familiarity, even when it's not a good thing. Sometimes the things that make you feel safe are the very things that keep you stuck.
"The video isn't really telling a story," she continues. "It's more about a feeling. There's constant movement around me, with people coming and going and places passing by, yet I'm still in the same place: surrounded by everything, but disconnected from it."
"A lot has happened in the gap between records, and it feels so good to be back," adds drummer Leila O'Sullivan. "A chance meeting with Crackedankles has given our band a new lease of life."
"I've been a huge, huge fan since I first saw them," says Crackedankles founder and Evil blizzard guitarist Stoko. "When our paths crossed at a gig, it was clear within seconds we had the same approach to making and releasing music. We're absolutely buzzing."
Forming in 2014, Liines released their widley praised debut album Stop - Start, produced by Paul Tipler (Sterelab, Elastica, Leatherface) in 2018, winning the Manchester Evening News CityLife Breakthrough Act Award two years later and reaching the finals of the Glastonbury Festival Emerging Talent competition. Along the way they've played shows with the likes of Sleaford Mods, The Wedding Present and Ash.
For the new EP, they roped in Tipler once more, with Katie Tavini (Nadine Shah, Hundred Reasons, Los Bitchos) handling the mastering.
As Shadows Fall is available now from Bandcamp, Spotify and Apple.
Catch Liines live at...
7 Nov – Locker at New Century, Manchester (supporting Déjà Vega)
16 Jan – The Lending Room, Leeds (supporting Desperate Journalist)
19 Feb – The Lexington, London (supporting bis)
26 Feb – Deaf Institute, Manchester (supporting bis)
Pic by Debbie Ellis