On being passed this album the advice given to me was this: review it only after at least four listens and pay special attention to the lyrics. Well, it’s been listened to a lot more than four times I can assure you and particular notice has been paid to the lyrics. So why such specific suggestions? Rest assured we shall get to that.
Following on from the 2006 self-released debut ‘Paris Street in Ruins’, the latest long-player from Exeter D.I.Y. scene stalwarts The Cut Ups sees the band in punk-rock storytelling mode, frenzied guitars, throbbing drums and yet somehow still a sense of leisurely relaxation. Sometimes the press release really does get it spot-on: “the sound of Snuff with a huge dose of Billy Bragg thrown in”. There’s certainly a case for this particular comparison. In today’s musical climate I guess it would be easy to make an association with The Gaslight Anthem or The Hold Steady only there’s a coarser element deep-rooted here. It’s punk, it’s sort-of folk, it’s just different really.
‘The High and Mighty’ proves to be a subtle offering in that it has an incredible ‘growing’ power. On first listen it’s not the most immediate of albums. Sure, it’s good, but it doesn’t grab you by the eardrums and cry out for your attention. But, and here’s the trick, after the next spin, and the one after that, it really begins to infiltrate. Each revisit to the likes of “Last Night I Dreamt I Saw Fugazi” and “”I Asked the Wrong Question” will have you pleading for more. There is the reason this shouldn’t be reviewed on minimal listens. The record is also one of those rare instances in which the songs get stronger as the album progresses. There’s no stock-piling of ‘hits’ at the beginning here. “These Bones Were Built On Rice”, track eight of eleven, is arguably the strongest on the album, and the following song, “I Know It’s OK”, is the single best punk rock anthem I’ve heard in a long time.
Which brings us on to the lyrics: the record makes for a pleasant change in that it’s positive yet somewhat quaint in its musings. The harsh and rustic sounding vocals pay close attention to the sense of home and appreciating where you come from. Even in knife-wielding Britain (as depicted on “An Ode to These Isles”) the band finds hope at home (“Let’s Go Home”). Seriously, the Exeter Tourism Board should snap these boys up for its marketing department. It’s all well thought out, showing a heart and seriousness that’s not always on display nowadays, and is essentially enjoyable. A thinking persons record perhaps.
Released on Household Name you know it’s going to be good right? Well, this is very good, an excellent addition to a roster that’s starting to build itself to the high standards of the early 2000’s again. Get this and then check out The Cut Ups at a D.I.Y. show near you soon. You won’t regret it.
‘The High and Mighty’ is available now through Household Name Records of London
Alex