Having almost exhausted my obsession for R.E.M., with the Number 1 of my countdown coming up tomorrow, it's good to find something freshly out that's equally inspiring. A Hero's Death, the second album from young Dublin colts, a quite brilliant record.
Having set the bar incredibly high for themselves with their debut Dogrel just last year, they've surpassed themselves here. They sound to me like a band who are going to be just huge and will merit every last drop of their success.
What's more remarkable about all of this is that their music is built on the most basic and rooted ingredients. In many ways this could be a late Seventies Punk or Post Punk album, in the vein of The Clash or Joy Division. There's rarely almost nothing that's remotely innovative or experimental here but it all pounds with the most intense, brooding conviction that is very, very rare indeed.
In the words of a friend and supporter of this blog, who wrote a similarly fulsome description of the record on social media: ' Direct and indirect, clear and vague, sad and joyful, nunaced, visceral, ambitious, fearless, hurt, strong, vulnerable, tender.' Thanks Rod. I couldn't put it better myself so am borrowing your words.This is a blazing album that demands enormous respect. There are precious few who can match them right now.
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