GANS pull no punches on debut album ‘GOOD FOR THE SOUL’
The Black Country duo announce their entrance onto the scene with punky powerhouses and hip hop homages.
Photo: Press
GOOD FOR THE SOUL is the debut release from British duo GANS, whose Euan Woodman (drums, vocals) and Thomas Rhodes (bass, vocals) have come together to craft one of the most unapologetic albums of 2025. It’s big, it’s loud, and it packs a little more than you might first think.
GOOD FOR THE SOUL blends genres with all the sneery ease of Irvine Welsh’s Begbie, and promises the same bite. The opener, A Fool is heavy and battering, while A Fool feels more electronic, reminiscent of White Lies’ work. Zany new wave meets good old indie rock in highlight It’s Just Life and the Ian Brown-esque Nightwalking shows that more than just a little of the ‘90s has been sprinkled into the mix for good measure.
Other highlights off the record include groovy Far and Wide — which itself shows the best elements of groups like Gorillaz — and I Think I Like You, the latter of which conjures up the Beastie Boys and Stereo MC’s. There’s one hell of a pre-match hype anthem in The Kings Head, and the drumbeat on Oh George bucks like a stallion on ketamine. The whole piece closes with the melancholic fever dream Well Done, which, lovably, echoes the same sort of liminal paranoia you’d get from watching Blue Velvet alone and after two espressos.
GANS’ debut is a bit of a melting pot, musically, but it works. It slots together like a jigsaw puzzle, the through line Woodman’s and Rhodes’ sucker-punching vocals and baseball bat-swinging backbeat. For a first album, there’s plenty to love here and scarce in the way of filler. Ultimately, it stays true to its word; music that’s just good for the soul.
GOOD FOR THE SOUL is out now via Strap Originals.