The new single from Tears Before Bedtime makes its intentions clear from the moment you hear its haunted, dark vocals and the thumping drum track that punctuates them… This is a track that is done lying down.
I Can’t Stand the Silence blends Tears Before Bedtime’s influences — which include Joy Division and New Order, and more modern influences in Chvrches, and Boy Harsher — into a kind of jet black angular post punk meets gothic art pop. The sound reaches a similar collage of sound as that which the Horrors assembled, from similar original influences, at the start of their career.
Tears Before Bedtime represents a new collaboration from Bob Malkowski, of The Modern, Inertia, and Die Laughing, and Beejarabbit, who has previously released under that same name, and played with several other outfits. I Can’t Stand the Silence represents the debut release for the pair’s new project, and it comes ahead of their debut EP, Antifragile, which is due out in Autumn 2026.
The song deals with the kind of emotional manipulation that comes from being in a relationship with someone who deliberately shuts you out, weaponising distance and silence to gain control. In the face of such manipulation, I Can’t Stand the Silence shifts from being a cry for help to an outright refusal to accept the situation. As Malkowski and Beejarabbit exchange lines, a swirling darkness builds, guitar riffs in a call and response with one another, locked in some sort of battle. It all underlines a determination to regain control and move on. The result is tense yet liberating — an explosion of emotion that forces change and growth. Describing the song, Malkowski says:
‘I Can’t Stand The Silence was the first song we wrote and the moment we knew we had something special working together. The ‘silence’ in the song is the kind used to shut someone out, keep them guessing, and take control of a situation without saying a word. We’ve both experienced that in our personal and professional lives over the years. It was cathartic for us both. It’s a great song to play loud and defiantly, and to send a message to people who have treated you badly: ‘I cannot stand you.’
Check out I Can’t Stand the Silence below.
In addition to listening in the post, you can find almost all the music BlackPlastic covers on the music player of your choice. Add the dedicated playlist below: