Label: City Slang Records
Released: 25th June 2021
The brainchild of vocalist and guitarist Mia Berrin, Pom Pom Squad and their head cheerleader have been kicking around for a few years now. With the release of 2019’s ‘OW EP’, they showed themselves to be fearless in mixing the saccharinely melodic with a snarling, biting attitude that wants to stake its place in the world.
Hooking Mia’s vocal melodies loosely around those of the determined grunge crunch, or hypnotic acoustic chugging, the weaponry they’ve been building up that now constitutes their debut album ‘Death of a Cheerleader’ is ready to tackle love with sharp, focused lyrics such as “You should ask your mother what she means, when she says stay away from girls like me.”
Amongst the frenzied punk energy and garage rock ambition come reserved moments – including a particularly excellent psy-tinged, angelic rendition of cult classic rock staple ‘Crimson & Clover’, which feels like it’s been repurposed and reimagined ready to deal with the icky-sticky side of love today.
Throughout ‘Death Of A Cheerleader’, the thrashing of guitar strings feels exorcising, but never overwhelming. For Pom Pom Squad it’s always been rooted in that rush of excitement that comes from finding something, or someone, you’ve been missing – including this album. It’s so much fun packed into a bold-stepping 14 tracks that you’re hard-pressed not to fall in love at first listen.
