You'd Be A Fool To Ignore
Album titles are funny old things. Some go for the obscure such as The Mars Volta with ‘Deloused In The Comatorium’ that make your jaw drop in astonishment whilst others go for the straightforward, The Beatles ‘Abbey Road’ doesn’t really pose a brain numbing degree of thought to work it out. Luckily, the Officer Kicks have stuck to the straightforward formula, simply naming their debut ‘The Six Grand Plot’, a title that latched onto the fact that the album took six grand to make; a nice easy title that doesn’t cause you to sit and think about its meaning for hours on end but rather leaves you more time to just listen to the music, although there’ll be no hiding figures from the tax man now.
Charging aggressively like a juggernaut looking for a fight, ‘Dirty Sally’ opens proceeding with a chugging rage of a riff that pulsates to the point of explosion before a jangle of guitar sweeps in and a raw raspy burst of vocals take complete control. Think Kings Of Leon minus the Southern drawl and with a healthy helping of The Stereophonics and you’re half way there. A barrage of ballsy bar room rock, ‘Dirty Sally’ is brilliantly raw and deliriously dirty as it paves the way for an album of soul driven unadulterated rock in its purest and most addictive form. ‘Dog Rush’ pounds by with everyday lyrics to speak to us all whilst ‘Bunny Boiler’ is instantly contagious with a bounce inducing beat and irresistible riff that guarantees the Officer Kicks have your attention immediately before ‘God’s Shoes’ winds things up with a vivacious crush of fist pumping rock intent on having a good time and insuring everyone does likewise. But not alls rough and ready in the Officer Kicks world as ‘Love After Death’ hints towards a softer side, letting the strings take centre stage and showing a new depth to the band that proves there’s more to them then the full throttle blast of rock.
The journey to ‘The Six Grand Plot’ hasn’t been an easy one for the Officer Kicks. Started in at the end of 2005, its been nearly three years in the making, encountered a change of record labels, a few punctured lungs along the way and a bill that many can only dream of acquiring for their debut but still there’s something special there. At times it does seem like you’ve heard it all before, Officer Kicks aren’t trying to recreate the wheel, but there’s something reassuring honest about their genuine ballsy rock that rips you by the collar and flings you across the floor. Its music to get drunk to, music to ignite a bawdy barroom to but most importantly its music to have fun to. Honest, rowdy and with Brit rock pumping through every beat, ‘The Six Grand Plot’ is the underdog biting at your heels and you’d be a fool to ignore it.