REVIEW: Kissing On Camera - Baby Names

After a string of electrifyingly raw live shows, Kissing On Camera have finally delivered their debut EP Baby Names, and it lands with all the urgency and bite of a band desperate to be heard. This is not a timid first outing. It is a whip-crack of noise and feeling, five tracks of emo-soaked alt-rock that bristle with anxiety, defiance and chaotic charm. The Dublin-born, London-based quartet channel their city-hopping angst into a record that feels like a jittery diary entry scrawled at 3AM. The guitars are jagged, the vocals waver between confession and catharsis, and the lyrics teeter on the edge of breakdown and breakthrough.

The EP kicks off with 'Corner Couch', a storm of twitchy riffs and emotional unease. There is something mundane and intimate about the image of a corner couch, but the track flips that comfort on its head. Instead of relaxation, we get suffocation. The drums rattle like nervous thoughts while the vocals ride the chaos, with just enough control to stay standing. It is an opener that sets the tone perfectly. This is music that bleeds and sweats and shakes under the weight of its own feelings.

Next comes 'Tag, You’re It', a two-minute burst of panic and frustration that captures the headrush of youth and the confusion of being caught between roles. The rhythm section here is relentless, almost sprinting beneath the track’s jangling guitars and frantic vocals. It feels like being chased by your own thoughts, breath catching in your chest, always one step behind what you meant to say. There is a lot of charm in how rough around the edges this one feels. It is the sound of a band refusing to smooth out the mess and instead throwing it at the wall with pride.

'Lil’ Horse' is the strangest and perhaps most endearing track on the record. With a title that suggests something small and perhaps a bit silly, the song plays with contrast. It is softer in its delivery, with moments of vulnerability breaking through the noise. But even then, it never settles. The lyrics lean into absurdity, but there is real emotion under the surface. It feels like the moment in the setlist where the room quiets for just a second before the crash returns.

Then comes 'Voice Actor', which has already been released ahead of the full EP and is arguably the centrepiece of Baby Names. This is where Kissing On Camera’s potential really sharpens. The band said the track was about feeling like every social interaction is a performance, and you can hear it in every scream and guitar squall. The song builds and breaks like someone trying to hold it together while the world blurs around them. The chorus is an explosion of punk energy, driven by the kind of frustration that feels dangerously close to boiling over. It is loud, messy and painfully human, which makes it hit that much harder.

Finally, 'Just A Kid' rounds out the EP with a bittersweet shrug. There is a weariness to it, a kind of sigh buried in the chords, like someone realising too late that growing up doesn’t come with a guide. The guitars swell and collapse around the vocals, which sound both tired and defiant. It is not a ballad exactly, but there is something aching here. The track feels like a cigarette lit in the rain, burning anyway. It is a perfect closer that ties the whole record together with a mix of self-awareness and raw nerve.

What makes Baby Names so striking is not its polish. It is the total lack of pretence. This is an EP that throws everything on the table, flaws and all, and dares you to look away. The production keeps things tight enough to land the punches, but loose enough to let the sweat and spit shine through. Each track feels like a live wire moment, caught just before it burns out.

For a debut, this is impressively cohesive. The band knows what they want to say, and they scream it with every instrument. There are clear influences here, from the emo crunch of Title Fight to the swirling chaos of acts like Wednesday and Alex G. But Kissing On Camera are not just copying a formula. They are twisting it into their own messy, urgent, and strangely tender version of alt-rock.

This EP might be short, but it leaves bruises. And honestly, that is part of its charm. Baby Names is the sound of a band that has something to prove but chooses honesty over perfection. There is rage here, sure. There is noise and heartbreak and confusion. But there is also joy in the chaos. The kind of joy that only comes from screaming into the void and hearing your own voice echo back. Kissing On Camera are just getting started, and already they are impossible to ignore.

Score: 8/10

Baby Names will be released on May 27th 2025.

Words: Kelly Gowe

Photos: Kissing On Camera