Ratbag

New Zealand native ratbag merges alt-pop songwriting with visual artistry, her singular animated ensemble and unconventional aesthetic fueling a rapid ascent both digitally and beyond. The 2023 EP why aren’t you laughing? together with its tracks “rats in my walls” and “exit girl” delivers candid, unpolished grunge-pop that marks the outset of an auspicious path.

Auckland-born Sophie Brown first defined herself through drawing, covering every available surface and thereby shaping her eventual stage name. The word “ratbag” serves as everyday Antipodean slang for an especially unruly youngster. Though presented with a guitar during childhood holidays, she deferred serious songwriting until her teenage years.

Brown has traced the emergence of ratbag to ennui with her immediate circumstances and a wish to fabricate a distinct “new world.” Her resulting music and visual work—realized across stop-motion, claymation, and other media—incorporates a fictional backing band that merges Gorillaz with Maurice Sendak, comprising Slug, a bird-like guitarist; Deemo, a red-skinned bassist equipped with devil horns; Fritz, a crocodile keyboardist wearing clown makeup; and Eugene, a drummer crowned by a purple octopus head.

Issued in 2023 by Universal Music’s New Zealand division, the why aren’t you laughing? EP gathered every ratbag recording then extant, presenting a gritty, dissonant blend of grunge and pop shaped by David Bowie, Pixies, and Billie Eilish. Outside its four tracks, ratbag released the theatrical alt-pop single “pinky girl” in 2024.