Proud City Fathers - Brands

  

  So what have I been listening to this morning? Quite a few new releases actually but amongst them the excellent new album by London band Proud City Fathers (https://www.facebook.com/ProudCityFathers).

  They've featured on here a couple of times previously so check out those posts for more info on them    https://justsomepunksongs.blogspot.com/2019/07/proud-city-fathers-sten-guns.html

  https://justsomepunksongs.blogspot.com/2020/04/proud-city-fathers-general-ludd.html

  And to listen to their previous releases go here : https://proudcityfathers1.bandcamp.com/

  Today they've released a new album titled Human Zoo. It's a dozen anarcho fueled punk tunes that are influenced by all your 80's faves but are topically on point. Straight from opening track Fake Toy Town you can tell that concerns from the 80's are still a worry in 2024 (we might have new builds but the local youths are still rejected). It's an album steeped in frustration and it deserves your ears. 

  It's available on vinyl, cd and digital download and with it being a Grow Your Own Records release you know you're getting a top notch package :  https://growyourownrecords.bandcamp.com/album/human-zoo

  A song I've picked out to highlight will have you bouncing around, it's called Brands... 

Proud City Fathers - General Ludd

  Proud City Fathers (https://www.facebook.com/ProudCityFathers/) are a hard hitting London outfit that featured on here last year with a track from their Outposts album (https://justsomepunksongs.blogspot.com/2019/07/proud-city-fathers-sten-guns.html) and who return today with one from new album Veneer.

  The album features a dozen gritty political punk bangers. Most are short, sharp bursts of furious energy. A definite plus point is that the vocals are clear enough that it's fairly easy to make them out which is great as this is a band with a message. A negative is that I think I'm too thick to understand most of what they're telling me. Or at least that was the case on first listen. But I'm listening closely, doing a few google searches and most importantly thinking about what I'm hearing. Granted songs like Cunt and Organised Crime seem fairly self explanatory but what's General Ludd about? Google suggests he lent his name to the Luddites, the 19th century textile workers who destroyed machinery as a form of protest. Not sure if he's the same guy they're singing about but lyrics have him sipping cocktails on the verandah whilst the masses are drunk on propaganda and the cannon fodder lie in pain, knee deep in mud miles away. I need to investigate further as it all sounds very interesting. The title track is Veneer. A veneer is of course a thin decorative covering and I notice the song is accompanied by a quote from Friedrich Nietzsche which goes “There are no beautiful surfaces without a terrible depth.” The theme of the album?... And on it goes, hidden meanings coated in a pounding soundtrack that has me scratching my head and tapping my feet in equal measure.

  It's available on limited edition vinyl and you can find it streaming here:   https://proudcityfathers1.bandcamp.com/album/veneer

  If you do know what this song is about (ie, if you aren't as thick as me), leave a comment. General Ludd...

Proud City Fathers - Sten Guns

  From what I can make out, Proud City Fathers began life on the council estates of West London and Henry Compton school. Forming in 1983 and originally called Suicide, they've had several names down the years; Systematic Death, The Filth, National Cunts and eventually Proud City Fathers. The line up features Mason (vocals), Gripper (guitar), Gello (bass) and Gaz (drums). You can find more info here : https://www.facebook.com/ProudCityFathers/

  Recently they released a new album titled Outposts, it's available on cd (ltd to 200 copies, over half of which have already gone) and digitally here :   https://proudcityfathers1.bandcamp.com/album/outposts-2

  I came across the band last week when I noticed Grow Your Own Records describing their recent live gig as "blistering" and I notice Bandcamp tagging them anarcho which would tie in with Grow Your Own's roster of bands (https://anthraxuk.bandcamp.com/). To my ears though they also incorporate elements of oi & street punk into their big and bold sound. It's a good album and you should check it out.

  This song tells us that come the revolution the red and black flag will be flying high (yep, definitely anarcho!), it's called Sten Guns...