High Vis Release New Single 'Trauma Bonds' From Forthcoming Album 'Blending'

With their incendiary second album, Blending, out in a month's time - London's High Vis return today with the latest single drawn from the record, "Trauma Bonds". Quite possibly Blending's emotional centerpiece, the melodic jangle and impassioned vocals of "Trauma Bonds" offer up an ultimately hopeful search for empathy and communication in the face of ongoing personal tragedy.

As front person Graham Sayle puts it, "'Trauma Bonds' was written after the news of another tragic suicide of one of our friends during lockdown. It forced us to reflect on how the death of young people had become so normalized within our group of friends that we had become numb to it. Friendships became Trauma Bonds and the gravity of these situations suppressed through toxic coping mechanisms. The song is a hopeful exploration into these feelings in an attempt to support each other through better communication and collective empathy."

In recent years, High Vis have exploded onto the DIY scene, earning a devoted following for their intense live shows and immediate lyrics that tackle themes from class politics to the challenges of everyday life. While their passion of hardcore stokes their fire, its post-punk's textures and moods that line their sonic adventurousness, which suggests the members of High Vis are never going to be confined by any notion of what they should or shouldn't be playing.

They've created their own signature sound of aggressive, gripping, artful punk that's as tough as any hardcore record yet sonically opens beyond the parameters of any genre or scene. And as the title of their highly anticipated new album suggests, Blending is about bringing all these new strands and elements into what the band are about at their core to forge something entirely new. Alongside longstanding favorites such as Fugazi and Echo and The Bunnymen; Ride and even Flock Of Seagulls were shared reference points as the band worked on the album together.

Blending has a more specific meaning that links to Sayle's lyrics too, he explains, "The message of the album is you're not who you're told you are.You're not your class background. Whatever it is, you're not that. Don't resign yourself to thinking you can't be this and you can't be that."

While Blending shows High Vis's sound blossoming even further from their exemplary 2019 debut No Sense No Feeling, the album represents another leap forward lyrically, too. Talking frankly about poverty and class politics, Sayle's lyrics have always addressed the downtrodden and discarded communities across Britain slipping below the waterline. This time around, Sayle's lost none of that social consciousness, but he's looked at himself and his own emotional landscape, and in the process created something that feels more universal, that reaches a hand-out to people and ultimately gives a message of hope.

"Trauma Bonds" and the album's title track follow the release of Blending's acclaimed singles / videos "Fever Dream" and "Talk For Hours", which features guest vocals from Charlie Manning-Walker - aka Chubby Charles - of Chubby and the Gang and Jonah Falco of F*cked Up. Between them, the album's singles have received praise and support from the likes of NPR, Stereogum, Paste, Consequence, Revolver, The Fader, Kerrang, Steve Lamacq on BBC 6Music, Matt Wilkinson on Apple Music 1, Under The Radar, Loudwire, Exclaim! and more.

Blending sees its release across physical formats and digital platforms on September 9 via Dais Records.

Listen to the new single here:

HIGH VIS LIVE DATES

Aug 13 | London - Summer Slam at The Grove

Aug 15 | London - Underworld w/ Fiddlehead & Militarie Gun

Aug 19 | London - All Points East Festival

Oct 14 | Manchester - Wrong Side Fest

Nov 10 | London - Underworld w/ The Chisel, Ironed Out, Nekra

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