B-Side Guys

Brighton’s Fragile Creatures have always thrived in musical contradictions. Their latest single “Bad Smell,” the third track from their freshly released album “Play Both Sides,” reinforces this reputation with devastating precision, balancing ear-candy melodies against unflinching social commentary.

Described aptly as “what the Beatles would sound like in the 90s,” the track borrows the Pixies’ dynamic loud-quiet template to craft what the band calls a “mini-epic.” This structural approach proves perfect for the narrative they’re unfolding – a searing portrait of a single mother trapped in a cycle of disappointing relationships and societal pressure to “get back out there.”

The song’s protagonist struggles through a parade of unsuitable men while facing external pressure from wellness culture’s toxic positivity. When she questions whether momentary feelings constitute legitimate love (“Can you feel it in your bones?”), the band illuminates how modern dating often conflates fleeting infatuation with deeper connection. This exploration becomes especially poignant through the repeated motif of doubt that permeates the lyrics.

Fragile Creatures’ journey to this moment has been similarly complicated. Having formed in 2012 after frontman Adam Kidd’s “7 long years of art school,” the band experienced the industry’s capriciousness firsthand – from recording contracts to development hell and finally independence with 2019’s “Heart Beat EP.” Their pandemic-era sophomore effort “Punk Yacht” embraced their eclectic tendencies, setting the stage for “Play Both Sides,” which the band confidently positions as playing “like a greatest hits.”

What makes “Bad Smell” particularly effective is how it channels the band’s hard-won wisdom into a narrative that feels simultaneously personal and universal. By examining how social expectations collide with emotional reality, Fragile Creatures have crafted a power-pop gem that doesn’t sacrifice emotional complexity for accessibility. The track’s final metaphor of romantic interest as persistent unwanted odor transforms an everyday annoyance into something more profound – a wry commentary on how we sometimes mistake mere presence for worthiness.