Spit And Sawdust
Underdogs Vol.1 is the brainchild of Manchester's Spit And Sawdust promoter Dave 'Fungalpunk' and brings together many of the grass roots punk bands that he has championed over the last couple of years. There is nothing overtly commercial about most of the bands on offer here, this is genuine punk born from the streets, hidden away in backstreet pubs but maintaining the energy, vibrancy and dedication that made punk such a force first time around.
As with any compilation it's a mixed bag but there are some real gems tucked into the line up. The humorous AFS kick things off (after an intro from Urchins of Menace) with 'Happy People' and how such persons make them sick. This is well played sing along street punk that is catchy enough without really displaying any kind of originality. The Scabs are an impressive outfit that have a real underlying feel of menace but it's Flat Back Four that are the first to really make you sit up and take notice. 'Psalm 23' is reminiscent of late 80s melodic punk (i.e The Sect), it's fast, tuneful and with some solid guitar licks marks them out as one worthy of further investigation. By contrast The Fractions take their lead from the Mighty Mighty Bosstones and tread the well worn path of ska punk. They do a decent enough job but there's something not quite right about 'Let's Get it Right', at times it just sounds a little messy and even out of tune and whilst they show promise there's room for improvement on several fronts.
Perth's Mafafi are unashamed when it comes to naming their influences and there is certainly a good dose of US hardcore in the rough sounding 'Dirty Pillows'. It's a good track though and whilst the production isn't the best it works well and gives a real feel of DIY with the impression that their live shows will be well worth checking out. Doncaster's Most Likely To Fail are another on the 'one to watch' list, they blend solid production with good melodies and if you had to make one criticism it's that it could have been slightly faster but they impress nonetheless. Manchester's Suspicious Stains are the first band to feature female vocals and it comes as a welcome change. Mixing out and out punk with the odd ska infusion works well, it's simple but effective and leads nicely into the heavily ska influenced Crouch Mog (RIP) from Bolton. They're a little rough around the edges but their track 'Billy Boy' is a great song and half way through the CD it's clear that the UK underground punk scene is alive and thoroughly kicking!
Lancaster's The Guilty Pleasures have been making waves in the 3 years since their conception. They've already played at the Wasted/Rebellion festival and are in the hunt for an opening slot on the Taste of Chaos tour. 'Stand Up' isn't the best track of theirs I've heard but it's good enough to stand out here with an infectious chorus. The Bullet Kings bring big chugging riffs and gruff vocals to the party with 'Alcohol and Speed'. It's decent enough with some smart bass lines but falls a little short when compared to the better bands on offer. Liverpool's Straitjackets are a cool band, their humorous 'Baby Got Killed by A landmine' is more of a straight up punk offering than their usual psychobilly but nonetheless impressive. Manchester's Revenge of the Psychotronic Man are another band vying for stand out track status with 'Becky Want', fast paced, catchy and with some great guitar riffs they capture some of the energy they display in their live show.
One Man Stand ride in from sunny (?!) Stockport and deliver a sharp shot of fast paced punk with 'Black Hole', this is good stuff that should have the Japanese crowds bouncing when they head over there next year. Social Schism have more of an old school anarcho feel about them, much faster and harder than most of the bands here they bring a refreshing sound to proceedings and successfully mix hardcore with distinct thrash tendencies.
Belgian's Koncept have been around for ten years now and it shows as they offer up a tight and accomplished track with 'Grown Up Bully'. They certainly wouldn't be out of place on the Lock Up Stage at Leeds or Reading but with promises to be back in the UK sometime soon you may well get the chance to catch them at your local spit and sawdust venue. Boredom AD are probably sick of comparisons to Rancid but that's simply because they erm... sound like Rancid! This is no bad thing however and they do their thing well with a hint of The Jam thrown in with the vocal harmonies. It all leads up to the album finale courtesy of Nomatrix and unfortunately it's a fairly weak ending as 'Reflections of the Popular Minority' suffers from rough production and sounds a little laboured and very generic.
Overall this is a solid compilation with plenty more good tracks than bad and serves as a welcome introduction to a lot of bands that you probably wouldn't hear of otherwise. The next step is to go out and catch some of them live and on this evidence there's plenty of reason to do so.