Shambolics are from Kirkcaldy, the town in which my football team, Raith Rovers play our home matches at Stark’s Park.
A few years ago, one of the young folk working at the football club noticed that a new indie band from the town were beginning to attract a bit of attention, and he got in touch to find out if they were fans of the Rovers. On finding out that they were, the idea was hatched to try and forge a link. Seizing upon the name of one of the band’s songs, the club decided to adapt it slightly and use it as a rallying call for season 2019/20:-
mp3: Shambolics – My Time Is Now
#ourtimeisnow became the rallying cry for the supporters. The song was used as part of the promotional efforts to push season tickets and the band members came along to matches to take part in promotional activities. And as match day announcer, in charge of the music played in the build-up to kick-off, my role was to include My Time Is Now on a regular basis.
As if by magic, the whole thing worked with Rovers clinching the league title and promotion at the end of what proved to be a COVID-shortened season. Shambolics now feature most weeks in the selected tunes, and while My Time Is Now still a popular choice among supporters, this season has seen the inclusion of some of the band’s new material.
They have been together since 2016 and within a couple of years had been snapped up by Alan McGee for the new label he had just launched, Creation 23. As a band whose blueprint for growth was based on building up a fanbase through constant gigging, their hopes and aspirations were temporarily put on hold by the COVID outbreak. They have been playing live again, and new songs have been released in 2021, including this indie anthem:-
mp3: Shambolics – Dreams, Schemes & Young Teams
Most of the regular readers of TVV will reckon that Shambolics aren’t doing anything we haven’t heard before, and I wouldn’t argue with anyone making that point. The thing is, they aren’t aiming to capture the attention of the 40-somethings who hang around here. Everything they do is geared towards the young folk who are hopefully as consumed by music as we wall were back in our teens and 20s when you’re of an age when you fully believe that the music you’re listening to cannot possibly ever be bettered, and is much superior to anything that has come in the past.
You can hear more of what they do over at Spotify, if streaming is your style. Click here.
2022 will see the band attempt to make up for lost time. Friday 28 January will see them play their biggest ever headline show at SWG3 in Glasgow. Prior to that, they will be opening for Cast in Sheffield, Manchester, Leeds and Newcastle, when the Britpop veterans take their, delayed, All Change 25th Anniversary tour out on the road.
THE NEW VINYL VILLAIN 