It was with great sadness that I discovered The Vagabonds (recently changed to TV) have decided to call it a day, citing “too many problems that were too large to ignore and we felt that we could no longer continue”.
Regular visitors to the blog may remember The Vagabonds came in for quite a bit of well deserved praise on the blog. They remain one of my favourite bands to emerge in recent times, one I’m glad to say I was lucky enough to catch live a number of times. Though there was little in the way of releases, their fantastic debut EP, Another Victory for Hysteria, deserved to be heard by more. Sounding like the bastard child of The Pogues, Stiff Little Fingers, The Clash and Whipping Boy, the EP was a fantastic blend of bash-em-out punk and stirring renditions of personal heartache and strife.
The band recently re-located from Dublin to London, sporting a name change (TV), they had finished recording a double a-side single, ‘We Gave Up’ and ‘Oh My! Why?’, with Stephen Street (The Smiths, Blur, Babyshambles). While obviously only two tracks, it seems they had honed a sound, moving further into more varied territory. Whether or not the single gets released remains to be seen but it seems kind of ironic that the single was titled ‘We Gave Up’.
It’s a real shame. These guys will definitely be missed, by more than myself, hopefully they’ll find success in whatever they turn their hand to in future.
Give ‘We Gave Up’ and ‘Oh My! Why?’ spin below and grab the EP for FREE via bandcamp below.