They started life as The Iain Duncan Smiths - a tribute band who merged the tunes and lyrics of Morrissey and Johnny Marr with the policies of the Tory government.
But now, in what they describe as “a desperate play for continued relevance” the band has rebranded themselves as “soft-left option: The Owen Smiths.
In switching their focus from the former Work and Pensions Secretary to the former Shadow Work and Pensions Secretary, The Owen Smiths hope to seal the widespread approval they need to lead the charts.
An album will be ready soon, but for now here’s the single “Heaven Knows I’m Radical Now”.
LYRICS:
I was lobbying for Pfizer and earning loads
But heaven knows I’m radical now
I was in the shadow cabinet, then I left the shadow cabinet
And heaven knows I’m radical now
In my life, why did I spend much of my time
Championing Big Pharma incentives and PFI?
Jeremy Corbyn musn’t win
So heaven knows I’m radical now
I was shadow work and pensions secretary then I wasn’t shadow work and pensions secretary
And heaven knows I’m radical now
Here’s the gist: you’re all a bunch of lousy entrists
But me I am an old-school Welsh socialist
I really am
I was lobbying for Pfizer and earning loads
But heaven knows I’m radical now
“You’re changing your tune so much,” you said
And yet I’m backed by Red Ed
In my life, why did I try
To privatise the hell out of everything and lie
Back in the days when the group focused on IDS and the Tories, they crafted a string of Mozza/IDS hybrid tunes, including ‘This Balanced Plan’, ‘How Soon is NWO’ and ‘Big South Strikes Again’.
The band’s 10 songs can be heard here and other working titles include ‘Priti Patel Makes Graves’ and ‘Suffer Little Poor Children’.