Review: Tokky Horror - 'I Found the Answers and Now I Want More'

Step aside ‘overproduced electro nonsense’, the punk attitude is back.

Tokky Horror announced details of their debut EP, I Found the Answers and Now I Want More along with a new single Godliness accompanied by a trippy stop-motion video. Reminiscent of varying indie/punk electronic favourites both popular and underground, the trio describe their work as forward-thinking, punk-attitude-injected electronica as a descent into their own futuristic landscape of ‘virtual hardcore’.

Upon first listen, the single Godliness showcases the best parts of their exciting EP, releasing 21^st May via Alcopop! Records. For this reviewer, the single hit with a welcoming nostalgia for university house parties of the early 2010’s, set to a soundtrack created by the first era of digital download, underground artists releasing a new wave of Drum&Bass and indie-punk dance tracks. Producer and writer, Zee Davine explains: “Creating intensity was the hardest thing for us, with none of it recorded in a room together—it was all virtual, and done with members sending takes back and forth through lockdown.”, they carry on “it’s definitely music for the virtual age”.

With the recent trends brought on by TikTok, and the opportunities found in confines and resources from the events of 2020, we’ve seen a rise self-defined fashion, DIY artistry, another rise of the bedroom musician and collaborative attitude to creativity across internet platforms. Tokky Horror is running headfirst into challenging the perfection of overly produced music and picking up what many underground and indie artists excelled at – keeping their personality untouched. Feeling like a tribute MIA and Karen O (of the Yeah Yeah Yeah’s) if the Prodigy had any say in the matter, Tokky Horror sing about their feminine lives, their purpose, regrets and their queerness. Zee Davine explains that “The music is a break from the overproduced electro nonsense only fit to being a ringtone”, which is clear and exciting upon listening to the current released music under the project.

Most stand out is the vocal performances from Mollie Rush and Ava Akria, joint vocalists of the trio, accompanied by infectious electronic instrumentation. Beautiful and full of personality, their voices move with the pace of the track, building in attitude as it progresses. The union of the three artists is some work of genius, with thoughts of collaborations such as Nneka and Chase & Status come to mind. The vocals come through honestly, with charm, allowing the listener to connect with the song – in a way that some may not – with many popular electronic-injected music.

The best way to sum up the feeling one might get hearing what this trio has been creating is in their own words: “Knowing that revolution in sound wouldn’t come from the punk purity of ‘One take! That’s a wrap!’ or from electronic music snobs spending hours tinkering with snare sounds, the trio worked quickly and honestly, with little to no touching up or fixing mistakes, and sampled widely”. Listeners can only be excited for what feels like the leaders in a new wave in music, both in attitude, and in sound, driven by feminine and queer people taking the best of the old and slamming it into the new. We can see Godliness and the upcoming EP being added straight to the house-party playlists of many- ready as the world opens up over 2021.

You can listen to Godliness over on Youtube and via all good digital platforms. If you’re interested in seeing them live, they have announced various tour dates coming up in 2021, with more details available over on their socials.

Words: Jenni Harrison