Dragon Welding: Hiding Things For Fun – Shadows of Defiance

Pop’s a machine, spitting out clones for the masses, but Dragon Welding break the mold. Their single “Hiding Things For Fun,” released March 28, 2025, from the album The Naughty Step (out March 2025 via Dimple Discs), is a downtempo electro noise-pop gem that sneers at conformity. Andrew Golding and Nik Cockshott, the UK duo behind the anagram, craft a sound that’s both cerebral and raw.

This is music that hides its truths in plain sight.

Golding, a Wolfhounds veteran, reborn Dragon Welding with Cockshott, ex-The Spores, after a 2023 one-off show. Recorded in London and Manchester, mixed by Ant Chapman and Golding, and mastered by Chapman, The Naughty Step is their fourth album, a meditation on unresolved struggles. “Hiding Things For Fun” slows the pace, its ruminative pulse a stark contrast to the high-tempo “Up & Away.” It’s a Gen X anthem, as Golding calls it, for ghosts holding lost lighters aloft.

The track’s silken vocals, delivered by Cockshott, glide over Golding’s glitchy guitars and programming, creating a mood that’s both intimate and unsettling. Lyrics—unavailable but described as grappling with lost ideals—evoke a quiet rebellion, per Blitzed Magazine’s praise for the album’s “individuality.” Andy Royston’s stop-start video adds a visual layer, its stark animation mirroring the song’s introspective bite. “It’s a shadow that dances when the world looks away,” the track whispers, haunting and defiant.

Tracks like “We Dance Among You” and “The Naughty Step” amplify the album’s eclectic edge, blending clever guitar with sonic manipulations. The production leans into dark electronics, at times risking overcomplexity, but Golding’s focus on social and ecological themes grounds it. “This is music for those who’ve lost but won’t quit,” it seems to say, a nod to the duo’s refusal to “make do” with a broken world.

Dragon Welding don’t chase trends—they carve their own path. The Naughty Step is a canvas of problems old and new, painted with noise and nerve. In our era, where music’s often a product, “Hiding Things For Fun” is a quiet revolt, a reminder that art can still question, provoke, and endure.