Girlschool - Auld Lang Syne

TWO New Wave of British Heavy Metal bands in as many weeks? It really is the time of joy and celebration. For as much as the turn of a New Year is about looking forward, it has a funny way of making you look back to the past, too. Though don’t ask me what the future holds for metal music; I’ve only just got my head around drone metal.

While the NWOBM (said as it’s spelled for maximum effect) has come and gone, there are timeless examples that follow us like a particularly good rock and metal smell (think smoky bar room stages, or the smell of a new pair of Doc Martens) through the years. Girlschool are about as prime an example as you can get. Formed in London, England in 1978, they have been a mainstay of the scene since day one, held in as high esteem as contemporaries as lofty as Motorhead or Iron Maiden. Oh, and the little thing of them being the longest running all-female rock band ever. Like an shoe shop for clowns, there is no small feat on display there.

To this day, the band are still putting out riotous heavy metal efforts just drenched in that era-appropriate style. There is no room to move for the pounding drums, that explosive guitar sound that reverberates like it’s being played in a cave and punchy, anthemic lyrics to boot. To which you might rightly pose the question, “how does Auld Lang Syne, that notoriously droning midnight mood killer, fit into all this?”.

Well, back in the long forgotten days of 2008, when all we had to worry about was whether Guns N Roses would ever get round to releasing THAT album, we got a very festive surprise. A Christmas supergroup album to end all supergroup albums and annoy any editor that pays by the word, We Wish You a Metal Xmas and a Headbanging New Year bombarded our senses with generally good intention but mostly wobbly execution of the Christmas classics. Granted, it was better than Rob Halford's one. Among the bonus tracks lay this, a rip-roaring cover of the song that makes everyone awkwardly hold hands with a neighbour they don’t really know, dialled up to eleven. It’s big, it’s a tonne of fun and it showcases that classic NWOBM style. What’s not to love? Except having to hold hands with your neighbour, probably.

So, without any more pomp or ceremony (you’ll get enough of that from Jools Holland), it's time to crank every speaker in your house and pour a drink that would make Lemmy think twice while you play in the New Year with style. From all of us at Rock Song of the Week, thank you for tuning in for 2022 and let’s hope 2023 is bigger, more fulfilling and twice as rock and roll as ever before. It’s been a hell of a year, you deserve it.