Review by Ollie Stygall.
Frank Zappa once posed the question, “Does humour belong in music?” The answer is a resounding and unequivocal, “Yes!” Alright are a straight-down-the-line punk rock 3-piece from Bolton who claim to be ‘too fat and lazy to play live’, which is a shame as, if this EP is anything to go by they would be an absolute blast. Alright have a sense of humour; even their name is imbued with a self-deprecating wit… “Who are you?”, “We’re Alright.” The humour extends to the blurb that accompanied this release which was almost apologetic suggesting, “If you fancied wasting your time with a review of it then we’d enjoy that.” I suspect these guys, despite the self-effacing humour, know that they’re doing something pretty good.
This EP barely scrapes the 2 minute mark across the 2 songs here, which in many ways makes it almost perfect punk rock. To my ravaged ears these guys remind me of the first time I heard The Stupids, that is to say this is fast-as-fuck but there is an underlying sense of melody that gives it an almost, dare I say, sing along vibe. I suspect that may be an accident on the band’s part but it’s there nonetheless. Despite the brevity of their songs and the sheer tempo, Alright do manage to add plenty of dynamics in a short space of time, even down to some tasty NYHC-style metallic breakdowns. Although the 2 songs here are a breakneck 1 minute 23 and 53 seconds respectively, they are fully fledged and fully structured and far more than just a throwaway blast of noise.
As irreverent as the band may seem there is clearly a great deal of care and thought behind the music. The playing is pinpoint tight to an impressive degree and the production is thick and powerful, maintaining just the right level of bashy noisiness but ensuring each instrument is perfectly audible. The band’s Bandcamp page may make mention of pop-punk but these guys for my money are a full on hardcore band in the great tradition of late 80’s UK acts such as Instigators, HDQ and the afore mentioned Stupids. On the subject of their Bandcamp page, these guys are fairly prolific having released 4 EPs, 3 in 2017 and one in 2016, each one comprising exactly the same artwork but in a different colour. It’s certainly an interesting and eye catching aesthetic. I would recommend checking out all four releases so far… which to be fair only amounts to a cosy 10 minutes or so in total. 10 minutes may not seem like much but many bands don’t manage this many riffs over a 40 minute album, so you get your money’s worth in a quarter of the time!
Alright’s EP3 is available for PWYW download on their Bandcamp page, along with the rest of their material. Give them a like on Facebook to keep up with their speedy new releases.
Review by Ollie Stygall.
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