Goldblade - Mutiny

If there's any award for staying power then iconic Goldblade and former Membranes front-man John Robb must be in-line for a punk rock knighthood. Robb has always been a do-er and here he is back with his motley crew with 'Mutiny', Goldblade's fifth studio album since their formation back in the mid-1990's. As the title suggests there's a swashbuckling nautical theme to the album and. while the album may not exactly push the boundaries of music too much, if you're after top-notch punk that's all chainsaw guitars and shout-along anthemic choruses, delivered at maximum speed, then there's a veritable booty for you here. Old-skool punk rock opener 'Jukebox Generation"'sent a veritable shot across the bows of the Top 75 earlier in the year and is probably the album's strongest track on show. About as subtle as a sonic sledgehammer between the eyes, 'Riot, Riot' with its buzzing guitars and terrace-chant chorus leaves you in no doubt of the song's subject matter. The title track with its nautical sound affects and (yet another) killer chorus nicely walks the tightrope between parody and punk rock. Ex-Nightingales guitarist Pete G.O.R.G.E.O.U.S and Johnny Skullknuckles further crank up the guitars as the good ship HMS Goldblade navigates the subjects of drugs ('Everybody's on Drugs') and US politics on the up-beat Dead Kennedys-esque surf-punk of 'Do the Neo Con'. 'City of Ghosts' throws up comparisons with The Clash's 'Career Opportunities' as do Robb's coarse Joe Strummer-like vocals. The album's six or so other cuts plough a very similar vein, with 'Where Have All the Rude Boys Gone ?' probably the pick of the bunch andeaving just 'DIY' as the only real filler (I'm sure I've heard that middle-eight somewhere else before). And how can you fail to love a song entitled 'Riot Squad for Toxic City FC' or the banjo-driven yee-har of the hidden version of the "Mutiny" at the end of the album. Okay, so let's be frank. 'Mutiny' won't float everybody's boat and will most definitely not satisfy the art-house new wavers who like their punk angular and understated. What 'Mutiny' does do though is prevent a musical genre, now in its fourth decade, from disappearing up its own backside with thirteen slices of solid and highly entertaining high-octane punk.

Track Listing:-

1 Jukebox Generation
2 Riot! Riot!
3 Mutiny
4 Beyond God and Elvis
5 Everybody's on Drugs
6 City of Ghosts
7 Do the Neo-Con
8 America Destroys All Its Heroes
9 Kids of Today
10 Where Have All the Rude Boys Gone
11 D.I.Y.
12 Riot Squad for Toxic City F.C.
13 Wake up! Wake up! You're Already Dead
14 Mutiny (Acoustic Version)