Goo deliver high energy indie rock, and leave absolutely nothing left on the table, with whirlwind debut album ‘Oh wow, oh well’. 

On ‘Oh wow, oh well’ Goo waste no time in getting proceedings underway. In fact, opening with the single ‘Payday’, the album explodes into life showing what this group can offer. A savagely strummed guitar fires out the speakers and cuts through, laying the perfect canvas for frontman Natasha to show what she’s all about. The vocals are controlled but out of control, self reflective but very much being broadcasted outwards. There’s an undeniable punk rock snarl as she sings for a generation, plagued by minimum wage contracts and disillusioned with working when you’re unable to reap the rewards. 

The energy doesn’t stop there as guitarist Sam Drury rattles through a busy guitar riff on ‘Fairweather Friend’. The energy here is more than matched by Kurt Wood’s wild drums on this tune, firing hits all over the kit. If it wasn’t already clear…Goo mean business. But in and amongst the chaos there’s a certain calmness to the vocal. The poignance of the lethargic delivery reminds me of The Strokes, especially with the backdrop of a fuzzy single note guitar riff.  It’s not the only nod to the New York rockers on the album, ‘Slow Mornings” arpeggiated guitar work channels their lethargic swagger. 

You’d be forgiven for thinking you’ve got the indie rockers sussed at this point, but standout track ‘Tsunami’ shows there’s more strings to their bow. They channel a sound that has become a staple of Yorkshire in 2026. English Teacher. Yard Act. Now, Goo. Empowered riffs with a postmodern spoken word delivery. If you want to go back further there’s some of Jarvis Cockers’ satirical twang in there, and maybe a hint of Graham Coxon in the guitars. The chorus of Tsunami lifts effortlessly, and is sure to have had audiences of their recent headline tour throwing some shapes.

Elsewhere on the record, tracks like ‘I like your style’ (which has a brilliant accompanying visual that matches the tunes crazy energy) and ‘Auto-Mate’ further channel the band’s raucous energy. Both of these tunes have this visceral, high-energy high-impact vibe. The instruments sound so out of control that they almost have a monstrous life of their own. There’s no doubt this energy will grip their crowd and send them into a frenzy at some of the huge outdoor shows this group will play over the summer. I imagine a field jumping and shouting in a sun kissed Sheffield at their Rock N Roll Circus set, for example. ‘Auto-Mate’ features some of Bryn Price’s finest bass work on the record too. The timeless riff that sits underneath a screeching guitar guarantees one or two mosh pits. Maybe three. 

Goo themselves admit that this was always a record designed to be translated into live shows, opting to collaborate with producer Andy Hawkins in a converted chapel. Naturally all the mixes are huge. The magnitude of the sound coming from every band is phenomenal. ‘Tiny Dinosaur That Only I Can See’ sums this up. The smack of every tom, and strum of every crunched chord point towards it being a festival banger. Only taken further by the sing along cries to keep swimming the play this one out. 

Personal favourite ‘Things Take Time’ has a floated vocal that sits nicely above a band locked in, completely aligned on the same things. It almost feels like a play out for the album before the victory lap that is ‘Balloons’. Almost an ode to 90s shoegaze. It’s like a love letter to Ride, or The Jesus and Mary Chain, the former being infamously loud in their concerts. The echoed vocal reminds me of Beach House, chillingly still over deafening guitars and a wall of drums. It’s the perfect way to tie off the record, showing exactly all this band have offered to date. As debut records go, you don’t get much more promising than this. It shows a group whose talents are multifaceted, who aren’t afraid to say how they really feel, and not only that but go about it at a thousand miles an hour. 

Only the future knows what the upcoming summer shows will bring for Goo, but after hearing this record, I defy anyone not to go and find out for themselves. 

Review from Alex Henderson – @alexander.hendersonn