Volunteers - Know Yourself

Being more a fan of post-hardcore rock than the genre itself (although I do rate Black Flag if that counts for anything), I wasn't expecting to like this, the efforts of an "old school hardcore supergroup" no less. However, from the opening seconds of "Fighting" right through to "epic" (almost three minutes long!) closer "What the Fuck?", it was difficult not to get caught up in by the sheer energy being pumped out of the speakers. Blink and you'll miss the gaps between songs - we're talking fifteen tracks in just over twenty minutes.
Volunteers rail against globalisation and corporate bullshit ("Language List"), bad self-image ("Know Yourself") and the evils of smoking dope at gigs ("Wrong Smoke"), although, with the lyrics coming at you like a hail of bullets, I had to refer to the inlay card to be absolutely sure. If nothing else, this is skateboarding music with a conscience which left me in the mood to fire up a quick game of Grand Theft Auto and do some serious damage. Apparently the late, great John Peel was a fan and recommendations don't come any higher than that. I bet they're shit-hot live.

Will Columbine
Tasty Fanzine

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