Sleaford Mods 'Eton Alive' (ALBUM REVIEW)
If you had to pick one band that truly reflected Brexit Britain it would very likely be Sleaford Mods, few of their peers managing to encapsulate and bottle the bleakness of this last decade like Fearn and Williamson have managed, as we enter its final year.
Still persevering with their stripped back two-man sound on fifth album ‘Eton Alive’, their debut offering on newly founded ‘Extreme Eating’ records, a conscious effort to maintain the band’s independence, the release also supported by an offbeat Twitter promotional clip, one wonders how much further the duo can take their unique dynamic and indeed whether the trappings of relative success combined with wider acceptance have tamed the flames of rage from their earlier recordings?
Fortunately on hearing these twelve new tracks, it’s pretty clear they’re nowhere near done sticking it to the man just yet, Williamson’s complex and expletive-laden vitriol still evident but perhaps less frequent than on previous releases, further evidence of perhaps being in a somewhat different place these days. New album title rails at the establishment’s continued ability to chew up and spit out the proletariat in order to maintain the status quo; lead-off single ‘Kebab Spiders’ a tirade against the rise in so called poverty porn TV documentaries.
Whether the release of ‘Eton Alive’ was deliberately timed to coincide with the week of this year’s Brit awards remains to be seen, but after witnessing the largely bland fare from our Nation’s flagship music event, Sleaford Mods represent a welcome antidote, the new material also providing a noticeable evolution in the Sleaford sound, perhaps linked to the changing nature of their collaborative process. Williamson also seems to be varying his vocal styles, sometimes moving away from his trademark street corner rant and actually singing, most noticeably on the downbeat and sombre yet equally listenable ‘When You Come Up To Me’, Jason’s sombre and almost heartfelt tone wrapped around Fearn’s sparse and Oriental tinged backing track, reminiscent of a number of 80s pop styles.
Lowlife references are still here in abundance, Williamson’s desperate ‘Take me away from It, I don’t wanna go near it’, vocal on the outro to the squalid coke addled ‘Top it Up’, a recurring theme on the record perhaps reflecting the Bolivian marching powder’s increasingly down-market penetration. Penultimate track ‘Discourse’, propelled by a frenetic backbeat is eerily redolent of Lene Lovich’s signature track, whilst on the taut’ O.B.C.T.’ we’re even treated to a kazoo solo, another anti-music piss-take sure to rile their detractors despite arguably adding to the song’s DIY feel.
Introspective closer ‘Negative Script’ implies a less sober past, feeling a bit like someone taking stock of the journey they’ve taken although on the evidence of ‘Eton Alive’, there’s no sign of the Sleaford bandwagon slowing down any time soon.
Words - Mike Price
