Bikini Body

Optimo the club always booked live acts rather than DJs and over the years it ran as a weekly club put on literally hundreds of bands. Perhaps as a result of this we get a lot of bands approaching us wanting to collaborate. The time felt right to start an offshoot label purely dedicated to bands. We are therefore delighted to present our new imprint: Optimo Music Rocks!

First up on the label is Edinburgh based Bikini Body, a live tour de force and no slouches in the studio either. A few weeks ago we teased the track ‘Mr Tinnitus’ but now the full ‘Weird Party’ EP is here. It will also receive a very limited vinyl release a little later in 2024.

We asked Bikini Body to tell us about the upcoming EP.

‘Weird Party’ is a collection of tried and tested Post-Funk Punk tracks, each with a personality that evokes the oddballs and tearaways you met at that weird house party the other week. ‘Mr Tinnitus’ leads the record with Disco doggerel and plenty of cowbell, signalling our desire to be dancier than Post-Punk and Punkier than dance. Personal experience of disappointing encounters, chauvinist male stereotypes and gendered ideals pepper the remaining tracks without compromising the irresistible groove inherent to the Bikini Body sound.

We made this record with our good friend and intuitive producer, Chris McCrory, at Green Door Studio in Glasgow. Capturing the live sound was at the heart of the recording process, and it is a joy to finally usher these songs from the dancefloor to your turntable. The release was mastered by the legendary Bob Weston.