'Mutiny' 01/08/2008 Captain Oi! Records

Sonic Dice www.sonicdice.com

Anybody who knows “what’s up” will know that old-time UK punk rock achieved perfection in 1983 with Peter and The Test Tube Babies’ classic ‘Mating Sounds Of South American Frogs’ LP, the perfect compromise between parody and punk rockage. Since then there have been many punk bands (British or not) trying to captivate that sound, humour and “X-factor” that will get punks to shed a tear in excitement. I personally find the Clash a bit too up their own “world music” ass to class them a punk band, the Pistols have consistently pissed on any legacy they might have had, with terrible reunion shows and (recent) racist incidents and the Exploited? Anybody in their right mind (or not on heroin) should not care about any of those bands.

Goldblade are a Manchester band fronted by the somewhat legendary John Robb of the also somewhat legendary Membranes and feature dudes from other quasi-famous bands from the Northern area. As a band they have been around for about 15 years, but listening to ‘Mutiny’ you could easily be mistaken to think they have been around since the late 1970s. After all, Captain Oi! have been reissuing quality records from the 1980s forever. Musically they have their bases covered and go for a very British old school punk sound that comes off like a yearbook covering 1979 to 1989, with a bit of pure rock, some punk, a bit of street punk and a dash of ska. Their regressive, old-time punk sound brings to mind the numerous mixtapes of punk rock, Oi! and street punk my older brother used to make.

There are no triple-layered guitar solos, no 4-way vocal harmonies and no songs about “that girl”. Instead, we get songs with a social and slight political slant, covering huge, universal topics such as drugs (’Everybody’s On Drugs’), the Neo-Conservatives (’Do The Neo-Con’) and the obvious, self-explanatory punk topics in ‘D.I.Y.’ and ‘Riot! Riot!’. The acoustic version of title-track ‘Mutiny’ has a nice pirate theme making it a perfect beer-garden or punk picnic drinking song, something that bands like the Dropkick Murphys and Gogol Bordello have excelled in for years.

This record is actually a breath of fresh air, since it seems to me that most modern British punk bands are either stuck worshiping old British bands or, rather worse, they are trying hard to copy the latest American trends and accents. I don’t know which is more laughable - skinny dudes in plastic shades and leather jackets pretending it’s still the 1980s or skinny Northern dudes in tight shirts trying to sound like they come from sunny South California. At least these dudes (or some of them) where around back then to be granted the right to reminisce about the “good old years”. At times the nostalgic vibes throughout the record work against it, leaving even novice punk rockers thinking “I’ve heard it all before” before they skip to the next band on their play-list. I can’t find anything specific to dismiss from this record, it’s really just too much to stomach in one go. The tempo is pretty much the same all the way through and neither the music nor the lyrics really escape punk rock conventions. Sure, I’m not listening to this for its potential originality, but some innovation beyond the great production values would be more than welcome. True to the punk rock spirit of the olden days, this is probably going to sound ten times better in a tiny venue than on record.

Glitzine Magazine

Check it out online at www.glitzine.net/recensioner/goldblade.htm

Alternative Vision

Online review at http://www.alternativevision.co.uk/cdreview498.html 

The Quietus Magazine  www.thequietus.com/articles/goldblade

It would not be unfair to say that after thirteen years in business – and with all members having ‘previous’ before that – Goldblade now fall into the ‘veteran’ category. That’s on paper, anyway. For those who have witnessed frontman John Robb in the flesh will surely attest that the man is getting younger. He is the punk Dorian Gray, and Goldblade’s fifth studio album is all the better for it. In fact, Robb is living proof that if you want to stay spry and vital, then salvation is not to be found in skin creams, Evian and caffeine enemas, when thirty years of late night sermonising in the sweat-pits of the world will do the trick.

After 2005’s relatively standard Rebel Songs, Goldblade has veered in a new direction best described as piratical-punk. Like a bunch of swarthy sea dogs waving their rusty cutlasses in your face while ripping the pearls from your neck, ‘Mutiny’ is a full-frontal, attack of boorish nautical punk songs delivered at maximum velocity. Think a less posh, bench-pressing 21st century Tenpole Tudor if it helps.

The quintet’s sense of fun and occasion is just about infectious enough to convince you to ditch your job and take to the high seas as eagle’s nest-dwelling bosun on the good ship HMS Goldblade. It’s something that’s woefully missing from so many of punk’s young careerists. It certainly must be tough for teenagers today to see Top Shop selling their image back to them – but not as tough as seeing men twice their age having twice as much fun in the name of punk.

Elsewhere all the usual Goldblade motifs are in place – the visceral excitement of a riot (‘Riot Squad For Toxic City FC’, the Rancid-esque ‘Riot! Riot!’), a smattering of politics (‘Do The Neo Con’), the need for a youth revolt (every bleeding song).

Perhaps the best is saved until last – an unlisted acoustic version of the album’s title track, in which Goldblade drop the aggro-level and deliver a genuine sea-shanty, in which Blackpool-born Robb boasts of being “Seaside born and seaside bred / Strong in the arm and strong in the ‘ead”.

Goldblade then: as daft as five brushes with haircuts to match. But much fun too - Always!!

Alternative Vision  www.alternativevision.co.uk/cdreview498.html

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Despite 'Mutiny' being the fifth studio album release from Goldblade I have never heard of them until now and have not heard a song from them until I gave 'Mutiny' a listen and I have to say that I am quite gutted about not hearing about Goldblade earlier as 'Mutiny' is a great fast paced catchy album from start to finish, all 13 songs have a chantable nature about them and there are many punk rock anthems to be enjoyed within the album.

On 'Mutiny' Goldblade remind me of the old skool early punk rock sound of Social Distortion mixed with earlier Rancid material and also the fast randomness of the self claimed gypsy punks Gogol Bordello but at the same time Goldblade have a bit of a pirate feel going on the whole album artwork is based around pirates with the track listing written on scrolls and skulls and old skool looking pirate guns gracing the front and back cover and the sound of the album is like a pirate punk rock musical, seriously if Pirates Of The Caribbean was ever going to be turned into a punk rock musical, not that it ever will be but if it was then Goldblade would be the guys to make it happen.

The album starts with the bands current single 'Jukebox Generation', now this is the song that reminds me of Social Distortion the most as the song seems quite slow paced but quite fast sounding at the same time, yeah I know it sounds a bit odd but that’s really how it sounds, it’s like really old skool sounding punk with raw vocals, bouncy bass lines and fast guitar work.

'Riot Riot!' is a true punk rock anthem of the greatest kind, the song is inspired by the LAPD tear gassing the 10,000 strong audience at a Californian festival the band were playing and also the riot cops in Moscow who went in mob handed on the massive mosh pit Goldblade had generated, now a lot of Goldblade's fans can relate to this song and even people who were not at the shows can relate to the song as bad things like this happen all the time over the world when they really shouldn’t, the song is a pure fist up in the air chant along song with 'Riot Riot' being the main lyrics to remember.

The album title track 'Mutiny' is pirate style punk rock at its best it’s such a fast paced sing along song, frontman John Robb's vocals are fast and furious with such an upbeat catchy vibe, the backing vocals are just as fast sounding purely like crew members on a pirate ship, the guitars and bass are so upbeat and bouncy throughout the whole song, the song also features sound clips of seagulls, pirate talking and laughing and much more to add to the pirate feel, the song finishes with a group shout of "Mutiny".

Listen to 'Beyond God And Elvis' and you will see where the Gogol Bordello comparison comes from as the start of this song sounds like it could be taken from any Gogol Bordello song, but then just as your getting into the Gogol Bordello style sound the song totally changes direction and goes off into its own sing along territories.

'Riot Squad For Toxic FC' sounds like a pure football hooligan anthem, it starts off with a sound snippet of someone scoring a goal and the crowd cheering, the song itself is a raw sounding punk rock anthem, it’s not one of the strongest songs on the album but it surely does make for an interesting listen, and it’s rammed full of football style sound snippets.

The album finishes with 'Wake Up! Wake Up" You're Already Dead', the song is a raw sounding punk song and is the longest track on the album and quite possibly one of the weakest songs on the album, but saying that, the chants of "punk rock, rock and roll army" do make for a good listen, it’s just a shame that the song goes all random towards the end.

Goldblade are a true example of all things punk rock, as they are more punk than most of the bands around in the punk rock scene these days, 'Mutiny' is a solid album release and I for sure will be checking out the bands back catalog.

4/5

Review by Trigger

The Line Of Best Fit Magazine

When it comes to punk, few men still in the business have the experience that John Robb has. Frontman of The Membranes, a band that was part of the original first wave of UK punk and that formed in 1977, Robb formed his current band Goldblade in the mid-1990s. Mutiny is their fifth album, and the second to be recorded by the current line-up.

Not surprisingly, Mutiny has a piratical theme, which works well with the swashbuckling tone of the band’s music and the inherently aggressive, anti-establishment nature of punk. In keeping with this, the band apparently plan to “tear up the stage like a gang of mutant pirates armed with a lyrical cutlass of searing social commentary”. Brilliant!

The album comes across as a sort of mixture between conventional UK punk, American hardcore varieties, and a strong populist outlook. Many of the songs are under three minutes, and are dominated by very aggressive drumming and chainsaw-esque thrashy guitars, as with as Robb’s coarse, occasionally slightly Joe Strummer-like voice. The themes being explored here are very typical – there’s a song about rioting and police brutality (the inspiringly-titled “Riot Riot”), there’s a song about drugs (“Everybody’s On Drugs”), one about the punk D.I.Y. aesthetic (“D.I.Y.”)… you’re beginning to get the idea. Because of this the album seems like its non-conformity consists of conforming to a very classic punk template – the choruses of virtually every song are unashamedly anthemic and consist largely of the song’s title being repeated multiple times.

But there’s not a lot wrong with that – you can expect a bit of a formulaic bent on modern punk records, it’s almost part of the appeal. Robb’s motley crew are uncompromising musicians, and the sledgehammer subtlety of the band’s assault will be appealing to anyone who’s enjoyed anything by other, older punk bands. There are more original touches elsewhere, as on the title track which has some amusingly pirate-y stylings to it – in fact, the acoustic version, which appears here as “some buried treasure for your pleasure” could be passed off quite convincingly as a particularly brash pirate sea shanty from 1784 or something – not that my knowledge of pirate historical musicology is really that complete.

Punk is often at least partly about using a rocket launcher when a fly swat would do – if that’s your thing, you could do much worse than give Mutiny a shot. Anthemic, heavy and uncompromising, it’s a solid and entertaining, if not hugely original, punk record.
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