The Isle Of Wight street-punk trio strike gold on album four!
Ladies and gentlemen, Grade 2 have arrived like never before. They’ve always been welcome round Punktuation’s way, but whereas their first two records were the work of three young punk rockers in thrall to influences such as The Clash, Cock Sparrer and Rancid, they’ve grown into a band whose records stand proudly on their own merits. ‘Talk About It’ is their second album to be released on Hellcat Records, and it boasts the Isle Of Wight trio’s strongest set of songs to date.
As the intro guitar line of ‘Cut Throat’ bursts from the speakers, it’s clear that the band haven’t so much reworked their sound as refined it; with their trademark dual vocal attack, abrasive guitars and ridiculously dexterous bass lines all present and correct. This time around, though, they’ve made more use of Hammond organ-style keyboards, to particularly great effect on second track ‘Hanging Onto You’. A love song of sorts, it recalls ‘Life Won’t Wait’-era Rancid, and is quite possibly the catchiest thing they’ve ever recorded. Oh, and we love that cheeky key change near the end!
Elsewhere, the title track emerges as a mid-album highlight with its buzzsaw power chords and a touch of glorious honky-took piano, whilst ‘Rotten’ sees the trio unleash the kind of hardcore-infused punk rock rage of which the likes of GBH or The Exploited would surely approve.
On ‘Smugglers Haven’ and ‘Wasteland’, they show their continued love-hate relationship with their native island, and on the genuinely anthemic closer ‘Otherside’, they reflect on what they’ve been through to shine as brightly as they do now. “In the depths of my own mind/I never thought I’d make it out alive” sings vocalist/bassist Sid, and it makes a fitting finale to an album that is very much themed around opening up about whatever might be weighing heavily on your mind. Hmm, is that something sticking in my eye (as NOFX would put it)?
“We do it better today” goes the refrain of ‘Better Today’, a song ostensibly about the impact of depression on a relationship and a subsequent recovery, but which could equally be a metaphor for the band and their existence against the odds. They’ve faced plenty of uncertainty during their 12-or-so years together, and to not just survive, but triumph as much as they have on ‘Talk About It’ is reason enough to celebrate. Grade 2, here’s to you!
‘Talk About It’ is released on 3rd April – pre-order it HERE.
Main Photo Credit: CHRISTOPHER BETHELL
- Cut Throat
- Hanging Onto You
- Standing In The Downpour
- Better Today
- Talk About It
- Don’t Worry About Me
- Crash And Burn
- Smugglers Haven
- Rotten
- Wasteland
- Otherside
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I spend my days teaching English to foreign students, and my evenings attending as many gigs as possible. Raised mainly on a diet of 90s third-wave punk, my tastes have grown to include just about anything from trad ska to thrash metal. The Ramones are my musical gods.
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