ORSTRALIA - 🔥Shed Burner Alert🔥 CIVIC : TAKEN BY FORCE
Melbourne punks Civic have been threatening to unleash a classic since they emerged on the scene with the 12” EP New Vietnam on Anti Fade records. A few strong 7”s followed. Two, again on Anti Fade before a move to Flightless for the 3rd. Then in 2021 the full lengther on Flightless….Future Forecast.
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| New Vietnam - 2018 |
This record along with their killer live shows proved that these guys weren’t just regular noise & bluster punks, but had legacy building in mind to stand alongside Australian punk legends such as the Saints, Birdmen, Scientists, Victims, etc. Future Forecast was definitely not far off the mark & a fiery debut to be sure, but I reckon this newie Taken By Force has taken them to that next level & has legendary written all over it.
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| Future Forecast - 2021 |
I first heard a lot of these songs last November when they supported the Gizz at a bangin’ outdoor gig in St Kilda. As soon as they hit the stage Civic meant business & were armed with a batch of new songs that were designed to burn everything down in their path. Civic blew the uninitiated away & for the rest of us already familiar with them we knew if they had captured this in the studio the upcoming record was going to be special.
Released on Cooking Vinyl, produced by none other than Rob Younger & mastered by Mikey Young of course, Civic have placed themselves in good hands to create a sound that has a nod to classic Australian punk sounds of the past, but is definitely full of forward moving momentum & carving out their own distinctive path. Younger has shaped a strong, forceful sound. The guitars have menace & bite, while the rhythm section has ample low end punch. A thing that’s often missing on a lot of punk records is the rhythm section is often left sounding thin & gutless. And the cherry on top is Jim Mculloughs powerful vocal delivery. Punk rock barks which are both commanding & tuneful don’t come around to often & Jim has a ripper!
If you want to know what I mean check out producer Youngers work with Radio Birdman. Yep Jim is carrying that torch!! Like Mcullooghs delivery the music is blunt, economical & to the point. Stand out songs for me are the one, two punch of opener Dawn & End Of The Line, Born In The Heat & there’s a kick arse cover of Masters Apprentices garage classic War Or Hands Of Time too. But this is really a front to back listen, not containing even a slightly off message track. This is a definite shed burner!!!
Ben Rankins
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