Cabbage

Crashing onto the hallowed Manchester, England scene in late 2015, Mossley quintet Cabbage injected a fresh dose of vitality into the local scene with their irreverent brand of humor, wild live shows, and scuzzy neo-post-punk. The loutish lads of Cabbage -- vocalist Lee Broadbent, guitarist/vocalist/lyricist Joe Martin, guitarist Eoghan Clifford, drummer Asa Morley, and bassist/producer Stephen Evans -- released their first single, "Kevin," a raucous blend of the Clash, the Fall, and early Nirvana. Beneath the jangly riffs and unhinged vocals, Cabbage revealed their clever depths with lyrical poetry about existential dread and man's purpose for existing. Their debut EP, the D.I.Y. Le Chou (released on Evans' own label, Play & Record), arrived in early 2016. In addition to "Kevin," the five-song effort included the strutting single "Dinner Lady," a gross-out account of lunchroom antics that also served as social class commentary. Their irreverence and musicianship garnered rave reviews and increased local interest, which led to a string of summer festival appearances and support from the Charlatans' Tim Burgess. Riding the buzz wave, Cabbage were picked up for a tour with fellow Mancunians Blossoms and Declan McKenna later that year. Before the start of the trek, they issued another EP, Uber Capitalist Death Trade. The band returned in 2017 with Young, Dumb and Full Of... -- which collected their early singles and EPs -- and the mid-year release The Extended Play of Cruelty EP. The release was lyrically and thematically focused on the deceit and material fascinations of man, with the lead track, "Celebration of a Disease," particularly inspired by performance artist Cosey Fanny Tutti's essay on the sudden shift from artistic stimulus to pure commoditization in the world of pornography. The group entered Liverpool's Parr Street Studios with James Skelly and Rich Turvey (the Coral, Blossoms) at the end of the year to record their debut album. The resulting Nihilistic Glamour Shots was issued at the beginning of 2018. Featuring the singles "Preach to the Converted" and "Arms of Pleonexia," the album combined the band's penchant for anarchy with political commentary and pop hooks. On November 12, 2021, the band announced their break-up, sending themselves off with a final batch of shows and a B-side collection. ~ Neil Z. Yeung