Scottish indie punk band Pinact prepare to release second album “The Part That No One Knows.” From left, bassist Jon Arbuthnott, drummer Lewis Reynolds and vocalist/guitarist Corrie Gillies.
Scottish indie punk band Pinact is gearing up to release their sophomore album, “The Part That No One Knows” on Aug. 25, a record that exemplifies a band finding their identity.
The production is cleaner, the songs are catchier and the band is now a three-piece with the addition of bassist Jon Arbuthnott. Compared to the band’s low-fi debut “Stand Still and Rot,” the band honed their pop songwriting without losing their fuzz and edge. Pinact just kicked off a short run of east coast dates to promote the upcoming album before its release, stopping in New Haven on Aug. 1.
Vocalist/guitarist Corrie Gillies said “The Part That No One Knows” was a high-pressure album to produce. It’s the band’s first release with a record label (Kanine Records).
“There’s more people to let down now,” Gillies said with a laugh.
The band isolated themselves in the Scottish Highlands for a week while writing the record and immersed themselves in the songs.
“It definitely helped to go up there and clear our heads for a bit and really focus on it… By the end of that week, we kind of knew what album we wanted to make,” Gillies said.
Singles “Seams” and “Separate Ways” are poppy enough to sing along and jump around to, yet punk enough to create a mosh pit à la Nirvana. The staccato drum-and-guitar attack in the chorus of “Seams” punches repeatedly while Gillies leads a sing-along of “Nothing worthwhile should be easy/I can see you looking through me/Are you really getting what you need?”
Gillies said the singles show a cheerier side of “The Part That No One Knows.” “I think they’re the more upbeat, poppier songs… They’re a good representation of the record but there’s definitely more to it than just those two songs.”
The addition of Arbuthnott on bass, Gillies said, added depth to the band and their writing process. As a guitarist, Gillies said he felt he could play more creatively and wasn’t stuck playing chords because Arbuthnott’s bass fills out Pinact’s sound.
“I think it made us feel more like a band. I think we always wanted it to be a three-piece, we just never found the right person,” Gillies said.
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“It definitely helped to go up there and clear our heads for a bit and really focus on it… By the end of that week, we kind of knew what album we wanted to make.”
Coming up, the band is eager to release “The Part That No One Knows.” Gillies said the band is already thinking about a third album and planning a larger U.S. tour for October.
“Now that it’s coming out, it doesn’t really feel like our record anymore. We’re ready to move on,” Gillies said. “It’s for other people to listen to now.”
Pinact will be playing at Cafe Nine in New Haven on Aug. 1 with Lee Bains III & The Glory Fires and Death Black Birds.
Schae Beaudoin is a staff writer for The Daily Campus. She can be reached by email at schae.beaudoin@uconn.edu.