BACKSTORY: A hotly tipped project from the UK with a mission to forge dizzying new soundscapes by fusing indie-rock, pop, and electronica
FROM: All four members attended Manchester’s Royal Northern College of Music
YOU MIGHT KNOW THEM FROM: Emotionally loaded dance anthems like “Nobody Scared,” “150,” and recent single “My Only Love,” or their set at FLOODfest in Austin last month
NOW: Bracing for the release of their anticipated debut album Teething, as well as an ensuing set of shows to support it
If a Mancunian rock band from the ’90s had a head-on collision with a gaggle of geeked-out ravers, they might sound a little something like Porij—a four-piece outfit that emerged from the musical ether in 2020. While their sound was fully formed and wholly original, the early days of Porij were not without drama due to lineup changes, personal awakenings, and the general chaos associated with early adulthood. It’s only fitting, then, that the band named their debut album Teething. “I actually had the title before we’d written any songs,” frontperson Egg says. “Teething is a painful process, but it’s also incredibly beautiful, and that’s what I wanted to focus on: the beauty of growth.”
For starters, the addition of new bandmates and fellow Royal Northern College of Music alumni, guitarist Jacob Maguire and drummer Nathan Carroll, was as smooth as it was transformative. “It just felt so right and so natural,” explains Egg of the addition of the two band members, who joined them and bassist/keyboardist James Middleton to round out the unit. “Everything happened so organically, our process didn’t change.” That gave the band the freedom to look at the big picture. “We’ve grown up and so has the music,” Egg says. “What’s great about being able to do something long form is that you’re able to be indulgent and fully flesh out all the things you want to say.”
“Teething is a painful process, but it’s also incredibly beautiful, and that’s what I wanted to focus on: the beauty of growth.”
The roots of Teething trace back to the Summer of 2022 when Porij started hashing out demos and sent them to indie-pop mastermind David Wrench, who wound up co-producing the entire record. Initially they were scared of letting go of the reins. Fortunately, Wrench was interested in elevating the essence—or flavor—of Porij rather than putting his own spin on their sound. “It was really lovely because we were able to experiment and fully explore all the avenues we wanted to go down,” Egg says. “We just made sure that we took that time to get it right and make something we were proud of.”
Part of the process was embracing creative chaos. “I think there’s an inherent ‘Porij’ sound throughout, but we’ve always been eclectic,” Egg says. “If anything, it’s probably truer to the Porij sound because it’s so eclectic. We write what we want to write.” And that covers everything from industrial, drum and bass, indie-rock, punk, pop, and electronica (“Wouldn’t life be boring if you chose a lane?,” Egg quips). The glue that keeps the album together is the songwriting, which captures snapshots of Egg’s life. “Most of the lyrics were written in autumn and winter of 2022,” they say. “There are 11 vignettes of how my life was at that moment and what was happening and how everything felt.”
Ultimately, it’s a coming-of-age album, and one of the topics Egg explores is navigating the world as a non-binary person. The most clear-cut example of this is “Stranger,” which initially felt a bit too raw to share. “I really didn’t like the song at first, and I think I realized it was because I felt so vulnerable being that open,” Egg says. “It’s about my experience living as a non-binary person and just kind of wanting to be normal and fit in, all that jazz.”
As personal as it is, it turns out the song is also deeply relatable—as Egg learned after a gig in January. “A woman came up to me and said she teaches in a school that has lots of non-binary kids,” they recall emotionally. “She said, ‘Thank you so much for being a role model for my kids.’ And I just burst into tears, it was very emotional.” Not that Egg wants their identity to define them. “I just don’t even want it to be a thing, but you either have to explain it or you just get misgendered all the time.”
“I think there’s an inherent ‘Porij’ sound throughout Teething, but we’ve always been eclectic. If anything, it’s probably truer to the Porij sound because it’s so eclectic.”
However, they understand the importance of representation. “I think it’s important that we keep talking about it, so that we don’t get bullied into hiding away,” Egg says. But that comes with a price. “It can be quite daunting, because I definitely don’t want to be speaking for all people who are non-binary—everyone has their own nuanced experiences.”
Other songs on Teething cover an array of emotions, such as good old-fashioned fury. “It’s the first angry song I’ve ever written,” Egg says of the track “Marmite.” “That was quite fun to tap into. I realized that you can be really camp when you’re playing with an angry emotion.” Also on the smorgasbord of feelings is depression. “Gutter Punch,” for example, was written during a rut. “It was just me dealing with my inner turmoil,” Egg recalls.
Even the record’s most romantic moment, “My Only Love,” turns out to have a bit of a dark side. “The song is about appreciating romance in the present and not making big sweeping statements,” Egg explains. “It’s enough for me to just love you right now—not enough people write love songs from that perspective.” However, there’s a caveat to the story. “I’ve since broken up with the person it was about,” Egg laughs. “It didn’t go so well, but I stand by the sentiment.”
Having just returned from a stint in the US, Porij is still processing their trip. The band’s show at FLOOD’s SXSW showcase was particularly memorable—for more reasons than one. “Directly before we played the FLOOD stage, I had barbecue for the first time and I shat my brains out,” Egg reveals. Bandmate Middleton was impressed by their fortitude. “I love how you declared it to the audience with gusto,” he quips. It’s the same unbridled honesty and wit that makes Teething such a memorable debut. FL
