Another disc kindly sent in from Household Name Record for us to pass judgement on. The Filaments seem to be one of those bands that most people have come across at some point, either seeing them supporting big names, or playing the toilet circuit as all of us punk bands have to do to get our names about, they do seem to be one of those bands that just wont go away untill you take notice, and quite rightly so. "Whats Next" is a great musical leap for the lads and a really enjoyable album.
It would be so easy to dismiss The Filaments without hearing them as just another run of the mill street punk/ska act but they really are worthy of your attention. Yes there are ska punk songs and street punk songs here, but they are blisteringly good and manage to incorporate a number of really good ideas.
Starting off with "sick joke" which has a pretty simple template of verse into bouncy chorus but there is just something about it that instantly engages the listener, the mix of rasping vocals, raw guitars and tons and tons of melody just flows right through the album with particular highlights including "lifes not a priviledge" , "mafia" , "men of the law" and "bastard coppers". It truly is an eclectic mix of great songs and great ideas.
The key thing that i think The Filaments have cracked onto here is that they can get across some really good messages in their raw punk anthems in a format that is both catchy and imaginative enough to stand out from an over crowded field. Its very easy to make this sort of music sound bland and void of passion but the songs are irrresistable, you cant help but raise your glass and want to dance.
There are a few moments that just pass by however, notably the dub experiment titled ummm `dub` , but you`ve still gotta give em credit for at least pushing the boat out and including ideas like that, on 2nd and 3rd listens it does at least provide a brief pause in the full on frantic-ness, and it`s played very well.
Overall i`d be surprised if this record, combined with the lads continual touring schedule, does not manage to pull them out of the UK`s underground where they have been working away admirably for years now and elevate them to the forefront of the UK punk scene. great stuff.
4/5
www.thefilaments.com
http://www.householdnamerecords.co.u...es/haus068.php
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