Five years on from their cult classic of a debut, Sydney’s Low Life reemerge with their second LP, Downer Edn. Overflowing with sludgy, pummelling melodies, Downer Edn sees the outfit return with an expanded lineup, more polished production and a wider sense of ambition while their visceral, defeatist punk remains characteristically tattered and frayed at the edges. Away from the Harbour Bridge and the Opera House and far from the beaches of Bondi, Low Life offer a subversive view of their hometown, one which brings to light the griminess and the seediness, the gritty realities that underlie the glittering iconography of life in Sydney. It’s this guttural desperation which pulsates throughout the streets and an eternally rotating cast of troubled characters who populate the city which colours Downer Edn and, in Low Life’s world, gives the harbour city its spirit – as well as its everlasting capacity for redemption.