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When The Wildhearts released their all-conquering ‘Renaissance Men’ album in 2019, Ginger Wildheart was often heard bemoaning the fact that it took a bunch of 50-year old guys to highlight the shitshow of affairs that was the United Kingdom in 2019. Where were all the young, angry musicians Ginger would often ask, pointing out the sense of apathy that had crept into music. No-one was ready for what was to follow with the worldwide lockdown, but the last few years of government corruption and cronyism, the White House sanctioned rise of the extreme far-right, and subsequently, the growth of the Black Lives Matter movement, has meant that young musicians can’t really stay silent anymore. Enter London-based alt-rock/metal trio Them Bloody Kids with their incendiary debut album ‘Radical Albums’.
Although in places ‘Radical Animals’ is played at a blistering pace, it’s not a blink-and-miss-it album. Opening track ‘Justified Lies’ is the only track from the 12 featured on the album that doesn’t pass the three-minute mark. Tracks are given time to grow, and spread their wings, and even when they still kick around three minutes in length, they pack in more changes in direction and styles in one track than the average album does in forty minutes (‘Show No Love’ being a prime example). Shades of System Of A Down here and there (the sharp and fragmented ‘Justified Lies’ especially springs to mind), but then there are also touches of acts like Jane’s Addiction, and more closer to home; the always-volatile Senser. Like a bit of stoner-rock but put off by the repetitiveness nature that can creep into the genre? Then unwrap ‘Do What You Do’, crank the sucker up, and let the nailed-on riffage from Seb Moederle-Lumb (along with his punkish vocals-meets-harsh screams) change any preconceptions that you have about the genre.
‘Molly’ and ‘System Corrupted’ are early contenders for the standout moments on the album. The former begins with a Jane’s Addiction-like sinister vibe, before the band floor it and Seb shows metalcore bands what tortured, screaming vocals should sound like, while the latter is a full-on rager that is all about the big-ass bass licks from the man they call Vein and the killer drum sound from Darren Maddox. Both tracks perfectly highlight the diversity featured within the album, and those Biffy Clyro fans that yearn for the early days of The Biff could do worse than check out ‘System Corrupted’. Other major moments include ‘Freedom Of Peace’, which actually hints at a prog-metal path before Seb comes in with some psychotic vocals and all bets are off, and the sweeping, epic qualities of the opening stages of the title track; a track that soon explodes to life with punk-ish gang backing vocals and huge dollops of vitriolic attitude. The pacing on ‘The Illusion’ alternates between full-pelt, and slower, Kyuss-like stoner riffs, which combined with a mightily impressive drum sound, all make for an interesting few minutes. And that’s what ‘Radical Animals’ does so well; it keeps the listener interested by constantly mixing shit up, and at times you genuinely don’t know what to expect next – who had Sabbath-sized riffs during closing track ‘Light On Upstairs’ on their bingo card? No one, right?
Suddenly Ginger has some allies in his war with the establishment.
Available now, more information, here.
