========
Two tapes, both reposts from early Escape years. As far as I can tell, Worceter's ALIENATION were a blip in late 1980s UK punk - when wild thrash and ugly stench were taking over the grooves and the anarcho punks were...well, simply not making as many interesting records as they had been just a few years prior. Greatest Hits (1987) is a band who might be trying for commercial success - kinda dark wave and/or post punk but their shot lands somewhere between endearing and off target (check the vocals in the verses of "Live A Lie 'Til You Die" and let's cringe along together). There are great moments here, and this vision taken to its ultimate potential could have been something special ("Vicious Circle" in particular). What ALIENATION did after that however is truly special - on 1988's Yeah, That'll Do they lose the bass and really hone their approach. Vocals are less in front of the mix but more controlled (read: more intense) and the guitar work is abrasive and overbearing; it's like they just decided to cut all of the bullshit and created urgent punk with a deep and frustrating edge. And then....well, as far as I can tell, that was it.
No comments:
Post a Comment