So let’s get one thing straight – I personally don’t think The Fight are that bad. I know a lot of readers have strong opinions on the band, which I guess they are entitled to, but personally, on the basis of their EP on Fat Wreck, it didn’t make much of an impression on me to get me too riled up. However, it would seem that in some quarters of The Fight camp believe I’m at the centre of a hate campaign to bring the band down. Incidentally, I didn’t even review ‘Home Is Where The Hate Is’ – Ross did – and even then he gave it 2.5/5. So anyway, a potted history. The Fight hail from Dudley in the West Midlands and after a few gigs handed a demo to members of New Found Glory. They passed it on to MCA who liked it and signed them (or one of the members at least anyway, if we are to be pedantic). Somehow the record ended up being released on Fat Wreck and The Fight toured the US pretty relentlessly. Without any major touring in the UK, the band had secured a deal with a major and one of punks biggest indies, hence some of the aggro that has been directed towards them. When MCA went under, so did The Fight‘s deal – resulting in a deal with Repossession Records, who are putting out this CD.
Clarification over and on to the business in hand – The Fight‘s new record, which happens to be their debut album. ‘Nothing New Since Rock N Roll’ is very bratty, well produced and, at times, impressive. It’s certainly a massive improvement on the EP. But there are still moments that induce cringes on a major scale that detract from the quality of the record – and it’s these the detractors will inevitably pick up on. The main issue for me is Kate’s (sorry, I can’t bring myself to use her K8! Moniker) insistence on adding ‘-a’ to the end of every line. It’s appalling. Case in point? “What’s the fucking point-a? I’m a lazy sod-a…†during ‘Can’t Be Bothered’. And that’s the first line of the album. Stop it girl. Stop it now!
The first thing you notice about the record is that it’s well polished. The guitars sound cleaner than an oven tackled by Mr Muscle, while Kate’s vocals are spikier than they were previously. The annoying ‘-a’ adding aside. Most of the tracks here are tales of teenage angst, taking in karaoke down the pub, evenings out at the nightclub and having trouble getting out of bed. Pulitzer Prize winning lyrics they might not be, but in all fairness the band will appeal to the younger element who at least still do these things, and not a boring old fart like me who’s tucked up in bed with a mug of cocoa by 11pm. Almost. However, and this is a big however, at times The Fight show a maturity you really don’t expect them to. ‘Moved On’ is fantastic – a vitriolic two-fingered salute to the people who have slagged them off in the past. Kate spits and snarls, the guitars chug and the melodies are spot on – it’s a genuinely gr8! (groan) song.
While ‘Moved On’ shows The Fight have the ability to pen a good song, they still lack consistency. ‘Sid and Nancy’, the guitar work aside, is rubbish, while ‘JB’s’, an ode to their local nightclub, is so bad it makes me want to hurl. Cliched, crappy and cringeworthy it’s bound to only appeal to the club’s owners. That said, the ballad-y ‘No More Legend’ is actually pretty good too and at least it strays from their usual tried and tested path. ‘Housewreck’ isn’t bad either and certainly good enough to induce a foot tapping or an air drum. Even the lyrics on ‘Stage School Kidz’ are impressive – a stab at the kids who take elocution lessons in a bid to become pop starlets; maybe slightly autobiographical as Kate was once a member of defunct pop band 21st Century Girls.
At times The Fight break out into brilliance and show just why some of the mainstream magazines have latched onto them in recent months. Indeed, if this had of been an 8-track mini-album it would be really enjoyable. But there are too many average tracks here which make you reach for the skip button, which is a great shame. Progress has been made since the EP, so if Kate can ditch the silly ‘-a’ suffix when singing then maybe The Fight will win over some of the punk purists after all…
www.thefight.co.uk
Repossession Records
Paul