Panic Shack aren’t knocking on the door of the punk scene, they’re kicking it off the hinges and dancing in the wreckage. Formed in 2018 as an antidote to the self-serious, boys-club atmosphere of indie rock, the Cardiff five-piece made up of Sarah Harvey, Meg Fretwell, Romi Lawrence, Em Smith, and drummer Nick Williams, have been building a reputation one sweaty, chaotic, but joyful gig at a time. With their self-titled debut album, Panic Shack, they bottle that energy into 11 songs that bounce, thrash, and laugh in your face until you’re laughing with them.

Working with producer Ali Chant (PJ Harvey, Yard Act), Panic Shack crank up both the volume and the ambition. It’s still pure party punk, but this time they’ve added synths, harmonies, even a trumpet. The record kicks off with the sounds of clinking glasses and rising chatter - recorded at an Amyl And The Sniffers show - before launching into “Girl Band Starter Band,” a ready-made anthem with a bassline that grabs you by the hand and drags you straight to the pit.

The lyrics feel like they were lifted straight from your group chat. Swiping through Hinge in “Unhinged,” ranting about dresses with no pockets in, well, “Pockets,” and trying to remember where the hell your lighter went. But beneath the punchlines is pointed social commentary and even sharper wit. “SMELLARAT” throws shade at creeps, while “Gok Wan” takes on body image and media brain rot shitposter’s precision.

What ties it all together is a sense of sisterhood so strong it could power the electrical grid. This isn’t a band yelling at you, they want you to understand and sing along. Every moment feels like you're living out a coming-of-age movie with your funniest, loudest, most obnoxious (in a good way!) friends. Before you know it you’re walking into a bar at golden hour, stumbling into a deep 3 a.m. chat about life, and shouting into the sunrise that you don’t know what you’d do without each other. “We’ve always wanted people to come in and be part of our world,” says vocalist Sarah Harvey. And their record is an open invitation.