The good Reverend is on a roll
When are Reverend and The Makers going to hit that stalling point that all bands hit at some point? With a CD full of remixes and edits? With an attempt at ska? With a song containing sound effects? Actually, no. It looks like the good Reverend has done it again with Sundown On The Empire. All of the above apply to this CD, and they all work. This is an insanely catchy tune, sound effects and all, which defies any attempt to pigeonhole it into a genre. This is a ska track at heart, and done disturbingly well, considering that it could have ended up a jungle-noise filled pastiche of an eighties chart flop.
AA side, 18-30, is a perfectly passable track. Not quite up to the standard of …Empire, but not a bad track. Perhaps it’s the incessant refrain “I want to get away/ On a holiday” that lacks that spark of imagination. Or perhaps it’s the repetitive bassy backing. Who knows? Somehow this one bypassed me.
The third original track on the CD is The Machine, and my heart sinks as I hear the beginnings of an electro beat similar to 18-30. Synthed-up vocals, an energetic beat, and… is that a drill?! Obviously the Kraftwerk school of music making: why stop at synths when you can actually use machines to synthesise, erm, machines. Halfway through we get blessed relief with a football chant. And those are words I never thought I’d say. Good for the clubs, not so for the stereo. But, again, not an actually bad track.
At this point I considered stopping the CD, but another remix of the stunningly unique …Empire tempted me into listening again. It is a great track, but do we really need x number of remixes? Including two (read it: two) more remixed of 18-30, both of which fail to improve on the original. Great songs, guys, but if you want six tracks, bring out an EP.