Not unlike their Parliamentarian namesakes, Bradford’s New Model Army have tenaciously hung on to their libertarian left-wing hopes of a new “utopian” society, fusing Punk, Folk, and their own twisted brand of progressive Pop along the way.
The band’s latest full length, Unbroken (earMUSIC) marks their forty-fourth year, and this record brings exactly the experience fans of the band will be looking for.
Justin Sullivan (the de-facto leader, main songwriter, frontman and only constant member) sings with his husky and smoke-charred but deeply impassioned gruffness about money, guns, life, the, universe, what could have been, and what still could be if only the world wasn’t in, well, the complete disaster of a mess we all know and hate.
The general atmosphere of the record is beautifully dark, and Sullivan’s lyrics mix the personal with the political and with somewhat mystical and esoteric universal and pantheistic themes.
Perhaps the greatest quality about Unbroken is its urgency. This is not a “has-been” band resting on their laurels. The primal energy and visceral kick of their earlier “classic” records are not only still there, but are actually even bolstered further by Sullivan and Co.’s increased wisdom. The power, fury, energy and leap-of-faith joy are ladled on.
Catchy layers of vocals deliver hook after hook in between the controlled rage of Sullivan’s half-shout / half-whisper singing.
Setting aside the rage and blistering Punk Rock, there is also a great deal of delicate fragility, as artfully and deftly demonstrated on tracks such as “Cold Wind”. Acoustic guitars and even string sections abound.
Other highlights include the Bad Religion-esque “Coming Or Going”, with its messed-up Lu Edmonds-style guitar and gang chants; album opener “First Summer After”’s subtle but raw bottle-smash of an introduction; “Do You Really Wanna Go There” with its catchily goading and desperate hook line; and “Idumea” with it’s rousingly tribalistic percussion and choral vocals. There are perhaps a few “filler” tracks here such as “If I am Still Me”, but these are of little consequence to the big picture.
The production is wonderfully dry, with some hints of ambience and interesting “cosmetic” features such as placing the snare hard left on some more ambient sections. There are layers of mellotron and other more orchestrated synths that bring a new wave / new age feel to some tracks, but never linger too long to detract from the punk aesthetic. The band are as tight as they come, and as loose as the Stooges at their best.
Mention should also be made to the sublime artwork, featuring a Punk Rock horse (or is it a red mitten?). Have a look and decide what you see.
This is not the same New Model Army that conquered the hearts and minds of a generation back in the eighties, but that’s the point. It’s a similar picture in a newly borrowed frame.
Unbroken is New Model Army as we know them, which is to say, this is more punk than most of the plethora of groups who “try” to be punk in this strangely, and occasionally beautifully, fucked-up modern society. Wonderful stuff.
Listen, and learn, comrades.
Buy the album here: https://newmodelarmy.lnk.to/unbroken
8 / 10 DUNCAN EVANS