Hailing from Congleton back in the heady punk years of 1977, Lee, Steve and Gez formed the band after listening to the classic punk bands of the time. Starting out at a local youth centre, the instruments included old bins for drums and an old amp. As time progressed, practices and rehearsals became gigs. 44 years later, Vomit are quite easily one of the most prolific punk bands there is, constant touring, a few line up changes, blood, sweat, tears with an incredible work ethic, numerous albums and a following not matched by many. Lee and the lads have kept the punk ethic going, with huge influences from the likes of The Sex Pistols, The Damned, Ramones etc, their sound and style have remained faithful to old school punk rock music. Many original bands in my opinion have become too polished and clinical for my liking, whereas Vomit still have that raw edge to their music, with lyrics that have stood the test of time, and are still relevant to todays social and societal issues. A testament to the band’s outlook on punk music today.
I’ve lost count how many times I’ve seen Vomit, Lee and lads always happy to chat over pint, whether it be at festivals or down the local pub. Quite simply, they are a band of the people, playing for you with clever lyrics, excellent instrumentalists and always giving their all, irrespective of the size of the crowd.
Anyway, here we are with their new album Lucre & Vice, 15 tracks of non-stop punk, no messing about, strong words for how they and most others see the world today. Melodic tunes to foot tap away to, you will soon see where the influenced are, certainly in Isolation, I hear Vanian in the voice, complimented by exquisite guitar, drum and bass work.
Isolation: Brief but powerful message of the where the world is heading, speaking of a “new world order” and how we quite literally are becoming isolated from pretty much everything. Strong lead guitar all the way thru, with deep harmonious bass line.
Another World: A story of lost love, and how easily people can be sucked into a different life. The lure of money, wealth and power can be a strong urge to ignore, unfortunately many take that path, forgetting their roots and where they come from, turning their backs on the ones who care about them.
Lucre & Vice: Title track exposing the downside of self-abuse, be it drugs, booze or anything else that takes ya fancy. Waking up one day and realising this isn’t what life is all about, there is always a chance to get out of it and start to live again. A song that can be seen as a cry for help not be “caught in the system being one of the 1 in ten”.
Hotel Chelsea: Nice bass intro here followed swiftly with old school twangy guitar chords. Lee blasts out the sometimes “stuck in a rut” place we can so easily get trapped in, not knowing how to get out with the same old shit, day in day out having had a “slice taken out of me”.
Waste of Space: Kind of a follow on from “Another World”, seeing the one you love with someone else, see “him” as the waste of space, and knowing how much better you could be for her. Feeling low and “rejected”, drinking to ease the pain and unable to look at yaself in the mirror, perhaps due to the state you’re in, or is it the feeling of being selfish, you decide
When’s it Gonna Start: Little bit of ska reggae thrown in for good measure here to start of with. So, what is it all about, why are we here, and just what is the end product, fighting for this, and that, wondering where it will all end? Taking time to stop and look deeply into yourself and reassess ya own life and seeing where we are going.
Punk Rock Family: And this is what its all about, the punk rock family, simple and straight to the point lyrics. Fun, live music, a pint or two, but most importantly good and fine people coming together as one.
Enjoy Yourself: The simplest of lyrics and yet probably the most important track on the album. Enjoy yourself is exactly that. We are “a long time dead”. Take each day as it comes, have a laugh, look after others, and certainly look after yaself. Easy for most, not for some, take care of ya friends and be aware.
Social Disorder: Throw back to the days of glue, going out, have a bevvy, kicking up a ruckus. Chased by the boys in blue. Ah, the good old days. A song of rebellion and revolt hailing back to the days when things weren’t so great, not that today is that much better, for different reason I might add.
The Weekend: Time for weekend, “looking for the answers” to the questions we don’t know. Just get out and have fun, where to go, what to do, meet up with ya mates and just do it
What did you do?: The ravages of time taking its toll. Looking back at how we used to be, how we looked. How we have changed outwardly and of course the way we see things. Just what have we done to ourselves. Perhaps its time to do? look at ourselves and take stock of what we are doing, or maybe not.
Tell Me: The need to communicate, to a part of someone else’s life, simple contact is a human need. Give me the chance to listen to your story, and I’ll tell you mine. Again, simple lyrics with a strong point, so many lonely people out there who don’t have the luxury of a friendly face and listening ear.
Shy Boy: A clever follow on from “tell me”. Standing at the back, being the “shy boy”. The odd one out, not in “fashion” with the others. Great line “dissonance is over thinking”, never a truer word said, the lack of harmony isn’t always a bad thing, being, or at least trying to individual/unique is a good thing, time to break away and be yourself.
Enemy: A track that’s hit right home for me. Apocrasy for those who don’t know is the religious equivalent to hypocrisy, only in this case it’s the changing of the rules to suit the “master”. The manipulation of the mass media to make people believe what isn’t true, the fabrication of distorted truth, lies and deceit. This can be applied to many things if not all.
Where it hurts the Most: A song of loss, sadness, remembrance and good memories. Losing someone close to us is “where it hurts the most”, not only those close, but also afar. How often do we see members of our “punk rock family” we have lost, some we didn’t know personally, but we still feel the loss. Not just in the punk fold, but many others. A great tribute song for all those we have seen fade away.
This is a very good album, strong words, different messages to different people who listen to the lyrics. Solid instrumentals, steady vocal expression, superbly produced and engineered at Tremolo Studios. Lee-vocals. Paul-guitar. Stuart-guitar. Andy -bass. Steve-drums, all make this album well worth getting, I can’t stress enough that this band still play punk as it was back then, nowt fancy, punk rock music at its very best. Sometimes melodic, always true.
Words and Photos: Johnny
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