Mouthwash

Mouthwash is a punk and ska group from West Norwood in south London, active from 1995 to 2011. The band features Chris Hugall and Rob Tortelli. It develops a style often described as urban ska, drawing on punk, ska, ska punk and rock, with songs rooted in London street life and South London speech patterns.

Background and style

The group forms in south London in the late 1990s and builds its early reputation by playing with prominent punk, ska and hardcore acts while still in its teens. Its songs focus on everyday working-class London detail, including rejecting day jobs, night buses, Brixton, the off-licence and the betting shop, alongside moments of romance. The music combines husky lead vocals, ska guitar, a strong rhythm section and backing vocals.

Releases and touring

Mouthwash releases early EPs independently before issuing its debut album, 1000 Dreams, on Hellcat Records in 2001. The album is associated with Tim Armstrong of Rancid and earns critical attention. After extensive touring in Europe and the United States, the band splits up, then reforms in 2005 with two new members and a stronger urban emphasis. Its second album, True Stories, appears in the UK on Rebel Alliance in 2009.

Notable features

The group has a reputation for extensive touring and for unusual road stories, including hitchhiking across America, living in a shack in the woods, touring in a van with a mental patient, and sleeping in a graveyard. It also receives national radio play on BBC Radio 1 and XFM. The band describes an interest in dancehall, 1990s swing and dubstep as well as punk, and is associated with a very English image centred on football, tea and beer.