From the opening bars of ‘Im an ACO’, the Angel City Outcasts have an undeniably charming street punk sound, and “Let it Ride” proves to be an unadulterated shot of fun punk goodness. But then if you have the moxy to open the album with a clip from the hilariously brilliant film “Swingers” then you know the band have their heads screwed firmly on. Like a hammer blow which is sexily executed on the heart, “Let it Ride’ is a short sharp (27 minutes) journey of punk in its most complex form of a hearty fuck you.
But what is so endearing about the Angel City Outcasts is the sheer complex simplicity of it all. While I may sound like I’m contradicting myself, the Outcasts formula is a simple one. Take some furious percussion, throaty vocals and as many fiendishly intricate guitar hooks as possible and the rest will fall together by itself. And somehow it does. That isn’t to say that the band are simply schooled in how to throw a mean party and get the crowd pogoing though. You have to look no further than the politically themed ‘Popeye in Afghanistan’ to show another notch to the bands talents of song writing and ability to make wind spitting efforts which are executed with aplomb. With the whole thing being performed in consistently high spirits, never once do you feel the need to skip through to personal favourites. And while it could be said that they rarely change their formula through the half hour, if it isn’t broke, why fix it? Too often these days bands seem more than willing to insert filler to appease other parties, but there isn’t any great need, and in the Outcasts instance, the ten tracks couldn’t be more perfectly paced and set up.
But if you’re expecting street punk in its purest form, you may want to look elsewhere. It doesn’t have the balls of One Man Army or the more familiar tones of Lars Fredriksens excess, and to some it maybe just a little watered down. The trademarks of the genre are there, but a refreshing twist has been installed to give ACO a leg up in the genre. Other bands and albums may have gained more plaudits throughout the year, but this maybe worth a look if you’re in the market for something a little different, and more importantly, something which doesn’t take itself so fucking seriously.
Jay
Thorp Records