Customer Reviews

New Brigade

5 star:		(5)
4 star:		(1)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

If you're going to stand out in music, either do something new or something old very well. Iceage have plumped for the latter, and their chosen window on the past is a small one - that precise moment when punk diverged into both its post- and hardcore (see the frenetic, discordant 90 seconds of "Count Me In") varieties. Accordingly then, said four-piece's teenage racket is not without precedence, but it packs an accessible punch all the same.

With breathless, angst-y brevity in mind, New Brigade clocks in just shy of 25 minutes and you wouldn't want it any other way. Sudden starts, stops and snotty outburst litter the running order. Galloping drums and tense guitar dominate. Slower bass work blends effectively with fast guitar and chaotic outbursts. The Cockney-twanged vocal that Elias Bender Rønnenfelt affects is authentic too, if far from his native Copenhagen.

A shout-along chorus comes courtesy of "Broken Bone", a punk-by-numbers offering until shards of guitar rip its tail-end to pieces. The explosive opener, "White Rune", combines a caustic crunch and sonic sneer that together bring to mind the still-excellent Wire mid-brawl with a cement mixer. Buoyed by high-end guitar skitters, "Collapse" threatens to do just that. "Holding on, holding on" Rønnenfelt repeats with bile in his in eyes.

Closing with "You're Blessed", a take on the sort of beefy 90s hardcore beloved by the true emo crowd, Iceage finally display their youth and it with it a handful of aces. New Brigade is as much a product of study as it is of love, as much one pilfered from the past as it is delivered with the passion of the present.

Advised downloads: "White Rune" and "Collapse".

You can tell these boys have a wicked record collection,most probably all vinyl.Iceage are 4 wonderfully surly looking danish teenagers who from the sound of things are deathly serious and judging from the few things i have read espouse the beautifully old school ethics of a no sell out attitude.How nice to finally in reviewing a cd to use that word.Attitude....New Brigade is a bratty,snotty record a kind of synthesis of hardcore,british punk and an undercurrent of Joy Division.There is a definite gang feel to the band,album which is cool.Its a short,sharp adrenaline filled racket with great tunes such as White Rune,New Brigade great titles like Rotting Heights,Total Drench.Iceage are the kind of band you will know whether you like before even hearing them.I feel its just nice to hear a young band sounding important,almost cute in their adopted "we do not care" ethos.The whole premise of sell out is not even a critical matter nowadays,as an audience are expectations are pretty low...Jack White writes a ditty for Coke,Primal Scream flogging cornflakes,Dylan records albums for Starbucks,Lydon tweeded up,gurning for the camera melting butter round his big mouth.I say good luck Iceage,you believe in your racket keeping it oldschool.Top lads,top album.So while the missus plays the atrocious Bruno Marrs in the kitchen i'll be upstairs pogoing to New Brigade tennis racket in hand.

found out about Iceage a while back and since hearing a few songs online, waited patiently for the record to be released in the uk and ordered the lp as soon as it came out.

Iceage combine the hollow, spacious sound and of post punk titans like joy division, the messy ramshackle noise of big black, and the speed and energy of minor threat into a frantic punk fireball.

clocking in at around 25 minutes, this is a brief but exhilarating listen that will make you feel like punching walls. The recording quality is quite messy and drenched in reverb (albeit an organic sounding reverb as opposed to the trend in the indie scene for processed sound) with the whole band forming a wall of sound (much like groups like jesus and mary chain).

given that the band themselves are still below legal drinking age, it's quite remarkable that this danish outfit have crafted a record as visceral and enjoyable as this. fans of post punk, hardcore and noise rock are strongly advised to give this record a listen.

Got this as a present for my nephew and he was very happy with it. Item was exactly as described and arrived promptly.

This has to be the best noise rock album of the year, because I just can't stop listening to this thing. All that dirty, gritty guitar, throbbing bass, cacophonous drums and echoed vocals, it all paints a picture of disaffected youth, lost in their search for adulthood. And this is all happening in Denmark.

Iceage is a band of youngsters, average age group being about 18, who decided that they want to play some dark post-punk music that angry people would like. Wish fulfilled! The first seconds of the first track "White Rune" instantly turned me into a fan. Drrnk-drrnk-drrnk; best opening for an album ever, it's so exhilarating!

All in all, I love it; very catchy tracks, memorable guitar playing and a muddy production that adds to the chilling atmosphere of `New Brigade'. Excellent!

MY FAVORITE LP OF THE YEAR INTENSE, POUNDING,INCREDIBLE,NOT TO BE MISSED,THIS YOUNG DANISH BAND IS HEADED TO GREAT HEIGHTS, STAND OUT TRACKS, NEW BRIGADE, WHITE RUNE, COUNT ME IN,IN FACT NOT A WEAK TRACK IN THE BUNCH.