Top Sounds - A
ACURSED - Tunneln I ljusets slut {Prank} A frankly bemusing release from this Swedish HC Crust band. You get 15 tracks of pummeling, relentless HC with a hint of Metal. Why bemusing? Well, the band thought it wise not to name a single song on the album (or provide lyrics) in case it distracted the attention ‘from the music’. Additionally, there are some bizarre spoken word interludes that really do not compliment the vehement, feedback-drenched, HC noise. This is the band’s debut for Prank, was several years in the making and tracks number five and 13 in particular are pile-driving, rabid slices of D-beat that are totally tunnel-visioned in their bludgeoning intensity. Eight slows things down to a crushingly powerful, dark, barked, Crust sonic attack that mirrors HIS HERO IS GONE beating up VARUKERS. This is bleak, harsh stuff that would not be out of place amidst the most brutal stuff Profane Existence has released. Members also play in VICTIMS, SUNDAY MORNING EINSTEINS and SAYYADINA. Not one for Blink 18turd fans. (08.01.09)
AGAINST ME! - The Original Cowboy {Fat Wreck} Fat Wreck has seen fit to officially release the mid-2003 recorded demos for what became this now Major Label Recording Artist’s second full length, ‘The Eternal Cowboy’. The songs certainly sound more raw than the official release and the inclusion of ‘Sink Florida Sink’ is only noticeable by its absence. I’m sure everyone knows what this Major Label Recording Artist sounds like these days, but this represents a time when the band had credibility and, amazingly, was something to actually believe in. Besides being rawer and more defiant than the original release, the main differences lie in the fact that what is known as ‘A Brief Yet Triumphant Intermission’ is placed as an introduction (and is much more potent because of it) and there’s a wired-up version of ‘Unsubstantiated Rumors’. As a record, I prefer this version; the opening four tracks all benefit greatly from being recorded in this formative, live environment while ‘Turn Those Clapping Hands Into Angry Balled Fists’ bites with all the venom it should have originally snarled with. But hey - this Major Label Recording Act knows how to manipulate the kids and this may just woo back a few of the disillusioned in time to buy the next Major Label Release. (11.10.09)
AMERICAN STEEL - Dear Friends And Gentle Hearts {Fat Wreck} If one thing can be said about AMERICAN STEEL, it’s that the band’s sound continually moves forward. The overt AGAINST ME! vibe of the previous ‘Destroy Their Future’ album, while not being totally abandoned, has certainly been usurped by a crystalline melodic sound not dissimilar from MILLENCOLIN with a hint of GASLIGHT ANTHEM. I found the album a bit sterile with too many tracks that could easily make daytime radio (‘Your Ass Ain’t Laughing Now’ and ‘Meals and Entertainment’ for starters) right next to Duran Duran. There are good moments - ‘The Blood Gets Everywhere’ is taut and edgy; ‘Tear The Place Apart’ includes a neat PIXIES-esque structure; ‘Lights Out’ and ‘Where You Want To Be’ are the album’s full-on rockers with the former being the highlight. It’s hard to hear the band that recorded the classic ‘Rogue’s March’ ten years ago on this album. Sure this provided a few foot-tapping moments but ultimately I found it a little too restrained and conservative to really captivate. (11.10.09)
ANTAGONIST A.D. - We Are The Dead {1157} This is a New Zealand band that plays a stunningly tight, vicious and gravel-voiced brand of alleged HC but, in reality, this has way more in common with Metal - for all I know (or care) this could be Kreator or Blacklisted. Lyrically the band can be commended for confronting issues including vivisection, the gorging capitalism of the ‘American Dream’, mass grief over the passing of a celebrity, climate change, self-doubt and vegetarianism; all of which are well thought out observations. Snag is, musically, this is just way too Metal for me. I don’t care if it is clinically precise (which it is) and played with power and conviction (which it appears to be). I want my HC a little more spikey. Soundalikes? Meld SHAI HULUD, SINCE BY MAN and SLAYER. I may be way off there but no doubt the scribes at Kerrang! are better qualified for this than me. (26.07.09)
ANTHRAX - One Last Drop {Happy Release} Ever since I first heard the classic ‘They Got It All Wrong’ during my late teens, I’ve always considered ANTHRAX as one of the most underrated bands - not just of the Anarcho scene but of British Punk Rock in general. This is the band’s first new material in something like 25 years, was recorded by the original line-up and features two tracks. Could the band live up to what went before? Well, pretty much yes! The lead track is another cracker in the vain of ‘...All Wrong’ rather than the Crass EP. It’s good to hear Oskar still berating a stagnant system and sounding pissed off about it; it actually reminds me a lot of ‘Time Was Right’ era PARTISANS. The other track, ‘Welcome’ is equally disparaging of today’s capitalist society but features a darker arrangement with acoustic guitars and a reduction of pace. It didn’t totally convince - parts sounded a little forced at times but successive plays do accentuate a depth not apparent on one listen - but definitely better than many ‘comebacks’ heard of late. (05.10.09)
ANTI-FLAG - The People Or The Gun {Side One Dummy} After a brief (and totally unnecessary) flirtation with a major label, one of Punk’s most politically vociferous bands is back on an independent for its seventh album. It’s another impressive slab too; but this time the band’s songs of protest strike with much more sincerity now that the ‘major’ backing has gone. ANTI-FLAG continues to expand its barbed attack here with tracks like ‘The Gre(A)t Depression’ that has a SOCIAL DISTORTION rock ‘n’ roll vibe, ‘This Is The First Night’ with its Guthrie-esque folk feel set to electric guitars and one of the highlights, ‘On Independence Day’ that incorporates a virtually dance-flavoured beat with a vitriolic vocal and guitar attack. Elsewhere the are more of the patented AF-isms be it the defiant ‘We Are The One’ (not the AVENGERS song) and the excellent ‘When All The Lights Go Out’. Most of the songs are accompanied by additional reading, the graphics are sharp and bold without being tacky and the whole disc has the feel of ‘Underground Network’ rather than ‘The Bright Lights Of America’. Neat three track bonus CDEP on initial copies too. It’s good to have you back where you belong fellas!! (11.10.09)
A.O.A - Axis Of Ascendancy (1982-90) {AOA} A stunningly impressive DIY release from this Scottish Anarcho band. You get a total of 42 tracks spread over two CDs, plus a 24 page booklet AND a DVD. Furthermore, in true Anarcho style, proceeds from sales go to environmental and animal welfare projects. The CDs compile the band’s official releases plus some live material and mixes DISCHARGE aggression with the direct, confrontational but intelligent politics of ICONS OF FILTH. The result is a ferocious sonic attack that's both uncompromising and focused. Highlights are plentiful but the ‘Who Are They Trying To Con’ 12" from 1985 and band’s tracks on the following year’s split with OI POLLOI stand out. The booklet features liner notes from guitarist/ vocalist Scott Paton (who did a fantastic job in compiling and designing this package), original graphics, lyrics and photos while the DVD is a live affair recorded at Tayport Beach, Scotland in 1986 at what must have been one of the first ‘Punx Picnics’. Besides A.O.A., there are live sets from OI POLLOI, EXALT, STATE OF DECAY, ID PARADE and TARTAN PAINT. It’s raw footage but hell, this was in the days long before Warped Tours and recorded when Punk meant something more than the currently favoured brand of sneakers. Easily the best DIY retrospective release I can ever recall seeing and one that should be a priority purchase for anyone who recalls the 80s Anarcho era. (23.12.09)
AVSKUM - Uppror Underifran {Prank} Destructive D-Beat damage here from this legendary Swedish band. AVSKUM has been playing unrelenting HC for the best part of 26 years and the 16 tracks present here could be the band’s most incisive slice of D-Beat core so far. Bar three songs, this is all sung in the band’s native tongue and highlights would be ‘Masskonsumtions Helvetet’, the distorto D-Beat bass core of ‘Befria Dom Rika’, the riff carnage that is ‘Slutet’, the Bones-esque nuclear guitar blast of ‘Krig Arett Javla Vansinne’ and the cataclysmic highlight ‘Capitalism Is Terrorism’. There are a load of D-Beat bands out there but few execute the genre with the brains and sense-melting ferocity of AVSKUM. The album is powerfully produced lending weight and depth to the tight playing. Add on some stellar artwork and this proves to be a substantial, raging slice of sonic HC action. (08.01.09)Hit HERE for material reviewed prior to 2009 including:
A DEATH IN THE FAMILY, ABS, ADOLESCENTS (3 reviews), AFI, AGAINST ME! (2 reviews), AIRBOMB, ALL AMERICAN WEREWOLVES, ALUMINUM KNOT EYE, AMEBIX, AMERICAN STEEL, ANAL BEARD, ANTHRAX UK, ARAMEUS, ARRIVALS, ATOMIC INFLUX and AUTOMATICS.