Wasted Life
We were recently sent through a copy of It Means Nuthin when You’re Dead from Stoke On Trent based, Wasted Life, courtesy of STP Records. These guys formed in 2007 and are out there producing straight up punk rock but avoiding the hidden political messages or specific messages from within the music. As such, I cranked on the CD and hit play to see what was on offer!
The album opens with Why Me and immediately throws you into a good old punk style pit of pogo’ing, raspy vocal lines and hammering guitar lines. This is straight up punk designed for the live scene, the sort of thing which reminds you why it was you started listening to music in the first place. Energetic, powerful and hard from the word go, this track seems to set the tone for the album, and it’s sounding damned good so far! State Of Anxiety continues the theme, this time offering up a soaring lead line to open proceedings, ushering the track into being before once again hitting home with the bass and guitar combo over the hammering drum backing. The vocals are the real show stealer here, spitting out at you with that punk snarl but somehow managing to create a sound which you want to hear, you want to hear more of their message.
Long Time Dead, Deprivation, Those Were The Days and Bad Habits all continue the same punky approach to things without any real change to the style, but it’s when Four Years Flat is upon us that the band seem to hit their stride and really hammer out a potentially classic track. Once again keeping things as you’d expect from a punk band, this time the bass roves around like a nutter, the drums keep the pace moving fast and different layers of vocals bombard you from every direction – if you’re looking for a band who believe in what they’re producing then this is the track for you, it’s awesome. All Fucked Up is yet another high point on the album, this time opening with an early GnR style riff before launching into a jumpy beat which is going to get live audiences going mad. This is another example of why you need to listen to this band, it’s a track which is going to get you up out of your seat, get you involved and make you want to hear more and more.
Everything For You returns us to the more stereotypical style you’d expect from a punk band, this time launching us into another track which is going to have crowds chanting along from the word go. What I really liked about this track was the way it progressed, it seems to have different sections, each of which has a slightly different feel going on but the whole time keeping you firmly on board with them. The end result, another highpoint on the album which is going to destroy venues the country over. Arrogance and Betrayed By Truth lead us up to the end of the album before we’re left with Mistakes to close the album once and for all. As a final track you’re left with a real taste for the band, hinting at a softer side through the softer intro to the track but soon assuming the hard hitting approach which has made this such a great album, leaving you with the sounds of punk ringing in your ears and a strange desire to get out to see these guys live.
I remember listening to Rancid and Lars Frederiksen And The Bastards for many years back in my younger days, and always there was this sense inside me that whilst it was good, there was something missing. Listening to Wasted Life I’ve discovered what it is, it’s the belief in themselves as a band and in the music they’re producing. What makes this such a notable album is that there is no politics and no message, you’ve just got an album designed to accompany life, designed to get you on board with the band and make you realise just why punk is such an amazing genre.
To find out more about Wasted Life, check out their Facebook page HERE.
Words: Dave Nicholls
The album opens with Why Me and immediately throws you into a good old punk style pit of pogo’ing, raspy vocal lines and hammering guitar lines. This is straight up punk designed for the live scene, the sort of thing which reminds you why it was you started listening to music in the first place. Energetic, powerful and hard from the word go, this track seems to set the tone for the album, and it’s sounding damned good so far! State Of Anxiety continues the theme, this time offering up a soaring lead line to open proceedings, ushering the track into being before once again hitting home with the bass and guitar combo over the hammering drum backing. The vocals are the real show stealer here, spitting out at you with that punk snarl but somehow managing to create a sound which you want to hear, you want to hear more of their message.
Long Time Dead, Deprivation, Those Were The Days and Bad Habits all continue the same punky approach to things without any real change to the style, but it’s when Four Years Flat is upon us that the band seem to hit their stride and really hammer out a potentially classic track. Once again keeping things as you’d expect from a punk band, this time the bass roves around like a nutter, the drums keep the pace moving fast and different layers of vocals bombard you from every direction – if you’re looking for a band who believe in what they’re producing then this is the track for you, it’s awesome. All Fucked Up is yet another high point on the album, this time opening with an early GnR style riff before launching into a jumpy beat which is going to get live audiences going mad. This is another example of why you need to listen to this band, it’s a track which is going to get you up out of your seat, get you involved and make you want to hear more and more.
Everything For You returns us to the more stereotypical style you’d expect from a punk band, this time launching us into another track which is going to have crowds chanting along from the word go. What I really liked about this track was the way it progressed, it seems to have different sections, each of which has a slightly different feel going on but the whole time keeping you firmly on board with them. The end result, another highpoint on the album which is going to destroy venues the country over. Arrogance and Betrayed By Truth lead us up to the end of the album before we’re left with Mistakes to close the album once and for all. As a final track you’re left with a real taste for the band, hinting at a softer side through the softer intro to the track but soon assuming the hard hitting approach which has made this such a great album, leaving you with the sounds of punk ringing in your ears and a strange desire to get out to see these guys live.
I remember listening to Rancid and Lars Frederiksen And The Bastards for many years back in my younger days, and always there was this sense inside me that whilst it was good, there was something missing. Listening to Wasted Life I’ve discovered what it is, it’s the belief in themselves as a band and in the music they’re producing. What makes this such a notable album is that there is no politics and no message, you’ve just got an album designed to accompany life, designed to get you on board with the band and make you realise just why punk is such an amazing genre.
To find out more about Wasted Life, check out their Facebook page HERE.
Words: Dave Nicholls