Sleaford Mods:
Divide and Exit:
Harbinger Sound:
CD/vinyl/Bandcamp:
Out now:
★★★★★★★☆☆☆
They are, they are, they are the Mods indeed. Part Shaun Ryder, part Pitman, part pitbull and not from Sleaford, this Grantham-cum-Nottingham duo mix gritty insistent LCD Soundsystem-style beats with grittier potty-mouthed but poetic rants aimed at every latter-day phenomenon such as drug dealers, the Royal Family, twats and just how shit normal life actually is. And when you are confronted nose-to-nose with the timely put-down "you fookin' tit-rifle" on the superb You're Brave, you know you're dealing with either an unassuming genius or utter drivel.
The sceptics won't get it and may well unfairly dismiss Divide and Exit as the latter and while Sleaford Mods won't win a Pulitzer or challenge John Cooper Clarke's crown as go-to post-punk heroes, spitter Jason Williamson has enough embittered venom in his aural arsenal to cripple a battleship and win over anyone willing to listen - which judging by recent critique, might be a fair few punters. As for loops and beats, DJ Andy Fearn quietly goes about the business of providing a twisted sound-platform on which to score Williamson's earnest urbanite stories. The formula of previous releases continues unabated - and that's a relief.
Aside from You're Brave, there are plenty of likeable highlights such as Liveable Shit, the bass-heavy Under The Plastic and N.C.T. and agit-rap Smithy. That's likeable vitriol, not as in fluffy-bye-byes-ukulele-strumming-Simon-down-the-local-fookin'-boozer-with-nicotine-smeared-rigid-digits-carvin-out-shit-folk-songs-for-dead-from-the-waist-up-posh-c*nts.... see, it's catching. Catch it.
Divide and Exit:
Harbinger Sound:
CD/vinyl/Bandcamp:
Out now:
★★★★★★★☆☆☆
The sceptics won't get it and may well unfairly dismiss Divide and Exit as the latter and while Sleaford Mods won't win a Pulitzer or challenge John Cooper Clarke's crown as go-to post-punk heroes, spitter Jason Williamson has enough embittered venom in his aural arsenal to cripple a battleship and win over anyone willing to listen - which judging by recent critique, might be a fair few punters. As for loops and beats, DJ Andy Fearn quietly goes about the business of providing a twisted sound-platform on which to score Williamson's earnest urbanite stories. The formula of previous releases continues unabated - and that's a relief.
Aside from You're Brave, there are plenty of likeable highlights such as Liveable Shit, the bass-heavy Under The Plastic and N.C.T. and agit-rap Smithy. That's likeable vitriol, not as in fluffy-bye-byes-ukulele-strumming-Simon-down-the-local-fookin'-boozer-with-nicotine-smeared-rigid-digits-carvin-out-shit-folk-songs-for-dead-from-the-waist-up-posh-c*nts.... see, it's catching. Catch it.