WL//WH Video Of The Day Wasted Youth
Born in the Summer of 1979 at the legendary East London pub and live venue The Bridge House in Canning Town, from which originates the eponymous DIY label that will release the band’s only overlooked stone cold classic album, “Wild and Wandering,” in 1981, the cult Post Punk outfit Wasted Youth implements a distinctive obscure and decadent mix of punk, psychedelia and rock’n’roll elements heavily influenced by the dark narcotic glamour of the Velvet Underground, the Doors, the Stooges and Transformer-era Lou Reed, with some early singles that produced nothing less than Peter Perrett (The Only Ones) and Martin Hannett (Joy Division).
Having split at the end of 1982, the band returned in February 2022, still featuring the original members, frontman Ken Scott and guitarist Rocco Barker (also ex-Flesh For Lulu), initially for a couple of low-key gigs, but due to a huge response, the band resumed full activity added young blood, Josef Rosam (Guitar), Sabrina Amade (Bass) and Alan Temple (Drums), to the electrifying mix, touring the UK playing well-received shows, including dates with renowned bands such as the Psychedelic Furs, Pop Will Eat Itself and festivals such as Wide Awake and Rebellion.
An Official Video by Sabrina Amade for “This is Your Day” shows us a “Noir” glimpse from the long awaited sophomore album “Neo Noir,” recorded over several sessions, between June 2024 and January 2025, in West Eleven Recording Studio, produced by Ken Scott and engineered by Kevin Harris.
“Neo Noir” LP cover artwork
The ‘Neo’ side of the album reflects the ‘new’ Wasted Youth, and is more contemplative and introspective than the ‘Noir’ side, which is more in keeping with their expansive live sound.
A nostalgic smoky gusto of Rock and Roll groove, about living life like there is no tomorrow to ease the pain of heartache blends simmering smears of subtly scorching riffs with supple, dangerous bass allure and light tapping and knocking percussions, to saturate layers of persuasive, swaggering husky baritones, before swaying into an upbeat chorus that syncs with ecstatic guitar flourishes.
The Official Video, directed and edited by Sabrina Amade for “This is Your Life”, takes a deep sentimental dive into the pop culture influences of the past to give insight about why people might behave as they do. A montage of memorable 1960s-1970s cartoon and movie clips shuffles with both vintage and modern shots of the Wasted Youth performing live on stage to sync seamlessly with the excessive, devil-may-care attitude of the soundtrack.
Wasted Youth heads out on a UK tour starting already in April, to promote “Neo Noir”. Here are the upcoming dates, with tickets available at this link:
♦ May 23 The Prince Albert, Brighton
♦ May 24 The Thunderbolt, Bristol
♦ Jul 5 YES! , Manchester
♦ Jul 6 Boneyard Festival, Blackpool
♦ Jul 24 The Moth Club, London
♦ Aug 16 The Moonraker Nightclub, Southend
♦ Sept 26 The Piper, St Leonard’s
♦ Sept 27 Music Hall, Ramsgate
Keep up with Wasted Youth:
