Who’d have
thought that a band I begrudgingly endured a couple of years ago at Leeds
Festival would turn out to be so much fun? It turns out they’re ardent
supporters of a range of leftfield and animal rights issues and you can hear
the wholesome voice of their protest in all of their songs. It’s undoubtedly an
accessible sound more akin to more upbeat Husker Du numbers than the likes of
Green Day and as Evlkeith would have it; ‘like Blink 182 but better’. And
protest they do with a gaggle of heartfelt, agit pop ditties that warm the
cockles of any old cynic’s heart.
‘Endgame’ is
somewhat tighter than my previous encounter with Rise Against in the form of
‘The Sufferer and the Witness,’ with a more disciplined sound formed into
twelve three minute punk-pop songs. It’s lyrically rich with the usual mix of
current issues and observations on the state of modern day America told with
machine gun ferocity and passion. Maybe the odd song outstays it’s welcome a
little, but in the main the standard of song writing is up well beyond that of
contemporaries such as The Foo Fighters or Queens of the Stone Age.
It’s a tough
job picking my favourites from this selection as all the tracks are strong, but
‘Architects’ is a stirring call to arms, ‘Disparity by Design’ is a hi-octane
dash through the evils of capitalism, and ‘Broken Mirrors’ is a dark rebel song
from yester-year. My flip flopping favourites are the adrenaline rush of
storming barricades in ‘A Gentleman’s Coup’ and the rousing finale of
‘Endgame’ itself.
It’s another
great album from a great band and let’s just hope it’s not their endgame in
reality. Hopefully not, as there’s an album pending for this year and the world
certainly needs some quality new music. Like Quorn scampi it’s a surprisingly
meaty and enjoyable experience from a vegetarian source!
