Reviews

Here’s one of these bands again that really get either praising or demolishing comments about what they deliver. I think I’ll end up somewhere in the middle. Personally I find it a bit odd how these guys stick to their 80’s punk image with the mohawked haircuts and pinned leather jackets, while on the other hand I think it’s quite astonishing as well that a lot of people really spit at them because of it. Although the last few years the dressingcode for punx seems to have vanished, I think most of us will go to a show wearing something that suits the occasion. We don’t want to look like a jerk now, do we? We all wear our favorite band’s T-shirt. If these guys feel good with the way they are looking and what they are wearing, so be it. Also, let’s not forget they are around since 1990, so this is not a temporary act. In fact, there was a time when people weren’t really shocked about these outfits anymore, whereas maybe today it does again.What they certainly did stick to, is the 80’s UK streetpunkstyle of bands like The Exploited and GBH; in-your-face punkmusic in overdrive with a filthy voice on top. These songs pass by like a fucking whirlwind, and although this might all sound very similar these guys are top of their class when it comes to playing this style of music. Really exceptional I thought were the bass-parts in these songs, that reminded me a lot of how Rancid does those. In fact the bass is second guitar here. Other than that, the guitar and drums are just trying to pace up with Jorge’s vocals and I can tell you these are at a whirlwind speed. I can’t say I’m really euphoric about the way this is sung, but of course the music doesn’t really allow a melodic whining high pitched voice, so I can’t but tell you that this shouting, yet not chaotic, roaring is the way it should sound. Comparing this to their previous S1D album “Die Hards”, I can’t say that a lot has changed, although maybe there now is some more raw touch to it, which the previous album lacked and sometimes indeed made me think this band was nothing but a gimmick. I suppose this one is baring more anger and spitting.Another fact is that the recording quality of this album is superb, taken care of by the guys from the Blasting Room again. Not unuseful to be aware of if you dig this style that only sporadically is available through professional recordings. In fact, it’s remarkable they didn’t let this luxuary spoil the true core sound this band is symbolizing. In the end, I really like this music for a couple songs, and I must say that a few of these songs will stick when you listen to the album a couple of times. It feels good to still have bands like this that create this energetic sound, although at the same time I must say I can’t feel related to that lifestyle anymore and therefore probably will never experience this music the same way some people might. Their lyrics (that unfortunately didn’t come with my promocopy) obviously carry the same message as their predecessors did. And I have to confess that with my luxurious life it would be hypocrite to say I feel personally involved or as pissed off as they obviously are, but that doesn’t mean I can’t be supportive of their working-class ideals, and I still think it’s better to sing about these things, repetitive or not, better than singing today’s nonsense by many (guest review- Hein from punkupdates.com).