Wakey Wakey Rise & Shine return with new-wave banger ‘There’s Less Trouble When You Stay At Home’

Bristol’s quirkiest quintet Wakey Wakey Rise & Shine are back with their sharpest single yet, ‘There’s Less Trouble When You Stay At Home’. The track serves as the first glimpse into their upcoming sophomore EP, Rear Meat, arriving April 4th via Velvet Echoes.

Blending the jagged, twitchy energy of DEVO and Talking Heads with their own brand of irreverent, post/egg-punk chaos, Wakey Wakey Rise & Shine deliver their most politically charged track to date. The song draws inspiration from frontman Smudge’s frustrating experience with law enforcement following a workplace assault—where police mistook him for his own attacker. Channelling that absurdity into a propulsive, math-rock-infused anthem, the band transforms bureaucratic incompetence into a compelling call for change.

“The song emerged from my first and final experience dealing with the police,” explains Smudge. “When the investigator called me by the name of the person who assaulted me, it became clear how broken the system really is. We wanted to channel that frustration into something meaningful while staying true to our sound.”