Sunderland-based duo Trivia are launching their debut EP with a gig at Independent this July, and if you like your melodic alt-rock to come fitted with thrills as standard, then you’re going to want to be there.

I suppose any article about Trivia is going to have to mention their youth, so let’s address that elephant in the room before immediately shoving it out the door. Hannah Hays (on vocals and guitar) is 14, and Lydia Stubbs (on drums) is 15. So. Yes. The pair haven’t been around as long as, say, The Walking Dead, but after listening to their debut EP on repeat, I can say with confidence that it’s got considerably more life in it than the last six seasons of said show. Taking their cue from grunge and the chunkier bits of early-noughties punk, Trivia’s rumbustious tunes absolutely fly, fiery riffs sparking hither and thither. They also know how to pen songs that are catchy without ever being cloying, and Hays certainly knows how to hit the back of the room on the vocal front. The pair have already shared stages with the likes of Tear Jerker, Slalom D and Red London, but with the release of this EP—which has been picked up by Serial Bowl Records—I reckon we’ll increasingly see them taking headline slots. RM

Trivia + Shipyard Rejects + Apricity, Saturday 18 July, Independent, Sunderland, 7pm, £8, independentsunderland.com