SLEAFORD MODS
UK Grim (Rough Trade)
A decade since breakthrough album Austerity Dogs comes what promises to be another raw, aggressive state-of-the-nation address from the semi-self-styled poet laureates of Broken Britain. Sure enough, on a title track that begins with a synth line as sinister as being stalked by Dominic Raab, Jason Williamson refers to “crisis stamina” and declares that “In England, nobody can hear you scream / You’re just fucked, lads”, while on Smash Each Other Up he reflects on the increasing post-Brexit social fractiousness: “Everyone’s getting well narkeh / Fistfights near Sainsbury’s car park.”
Targets this time around include keyboard warriors, old friends drifting rightwards politically and – more provocatively, on the unsparingly scathing DIwhy – the grassroots music scene. UK Grim wobbles when it moves into less charted waters, though. The portrait of childhood disillusionment on I Claudius hits home (“I saw Santa Claus with a bag of chips)”, but Apart From You is a dud and So Trendy – an improbable collaboration with hippy shaman Perry Farrell and guitar god Dave Navarro of LA sex-rockers Jane’s Addiction – does no one involved any favours.
words BEN WOOLHEAD
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