Viagr Aboys is an album that takes you on a journey of what music is designed to be, fun! Launched via their new label Shrimptech Enterprises, it explores Viagra Boys’ charming humour and uniqueness as a band whilst maintaining their familiar post-punk sound.
Delving deep within its lyrical architecture, the ‘supposed’ self-titled record explores frontman Sebastian Murphy’s role and identity in the world, navigating it through almost outlandish and controversial topics from “harvesting clams” and “sacrificial rituals.”
The opening track of the album ‘Man Made of Meat’ serves as an invitation into the wacky world of Viagra Boys. The song’s crazy lyrical themes draw inspiration of Murphy’s experience cruising through Walmart’s whilst touring the US with Queens of the Stone Age. Despite this, Murphy confesses he is just ‘a man made of meat’, looking past his intellectual and emotional complexities and realising he is just flesh and bone. A line that highlights Murphy’s creative ability and approach to songwriting, exploring deep lyrical themes.
The track acts as an instigator for the insanity that is about to ensue on this record, and this is not a straightforward or basic approach to crafting a record. Accompanied by a catchy riff and fuelled by a killer bassline that is present throughout the entirety of the track, an infectious earworm of an opener.
After Viagra Boys’ last venture, the visceral and unpredictable ‘Cave World’, you would think it couldn’t get more ‘out there’, right? The reality is that it can. That is why Viagr Aboys is cohesive as a record. The album can go from sounding fiery with its raw punk energy to plummeting down to ethereal and dreamy tracks, but the magic is, nothing ever feels out of place.
With metal being my primary genre of music, I’m pleasantly surprised my highlight of Viagr Aboys is one of the slower numbers found at the halfway point of the record entitled ‘Medicine for Horses’. It sits at the perfect point on the album, allowing you to come down from the raucous and at times unrelenting intensity of previous tracks. The chaos takes a breath with its soothing female backing vocals almost pulling you into a trance and Murphy’s vocal delivery acquiring a raw vulnerability. The track is the epiphany of peacefully drifting off to sleep or long late-night drives on open roads.
‘River King’ isn’t just the end of an album; it feels like the end of a journey. The final piece of the puzzle that reflects the complex simplicity of the record underneath its mask of madness. The track is like a short anecdotal scenario of Murphy’s idealistic world. A world where people can enjoy the good things in life without the existential worry of modern society norms. Boiled down life isn’t as multifaceted as it is made out to be, and this is executed brilliantly with Murphy singing about sitting playing video games and eating Chinese food in his favourite local spot.
Viagr Aboys is a bold record that is not scared to be different or unique. It is unapologetic in its raw and chaotic energy, digging deep into feelings of disconnection both on a personal and societal level. Co-produced by Pelle Gunnerfeldt, Viagr Aboys will take the Swedish post-punk outfit into the next era of their sound.
Viagra Boys: Viagr Aboys – Out 25 April 2025 (Shrimptech Enterprises)
Boys – Man Made of Meat (Official Video)
