Cleopatra Records [Release date 26.02.21]
Veteran punk band Down By Law have returned with their 12th album “Lonely Town”, and it is a welcome return. Frontman and founding member Dave Smalley has led the band through line-up changes, international tours and many ups and downs since forming the band in 1989, and this is celebrated in the album’s first single “Denim & Leather”, the lyrics of which will resonate with many of us listening.
Down By Law’s sound nods more to the spirit of UK punk music then that of some of their contemporaries, but also owes as much to the like of The Jam and The Police as it does the Pistols, examples of this are littered throughought the album’s thirteen tracks and include “Anthem”, “Gleam”, “So Solo”, “Sour”, “This Heart Remains” and title track “Lonely town”. Combine this with the heavier, faster pace of songs like “Darkest Sun”, “Black Sheep” and “Heroes & Zeroes” and what you get is an album that consistently pulls you in and keeps you there.
When I first heard “Go Back Home” I immediately though of the Black Star Riders, so it came as no surprise to find it was co-written and features the vocals of frontman Ricky Warwick. What did come as a surprise was the cover of Herman’s Hermits “My Reservation’s Been Confirmed”, and this actually works really well, it retains the feel of the original with a dose of “Johnny B. Goode” thrown in for good measure.
Down By Law are a punk band at heart but have written some damned catchy songs here with plenty of choruses that will also appeal to a broader spectrum of rock listeners, this one included. ****
Review by Nikk Gunns
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Power Plays w/c 9 December 2024
In this sequence we play ‘The Best of 2024′ GRTR! reviewer selections
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