Hailing from West London, Charlie Manning and his group of wandering minstrels – Chubby and the Gang – might be right up there with Dirt Box Disco in the “don’t be fooled by the shit name” awards but could be real contenders to nick the latter’s Rebellion crown.
Kicking off with a fast and frantic two-minute declaration on intent – Do “Chubby and the Gang Rule Okay”? Fuck yeah!
I guess you could start with a Sham or Cockney Rejects comparison. It’s certainly very London street punk but there’s definitely some Damned in there too along with a ton of other bands in your record collection. But that’s a good thing, right? Believe me, you’re gonna love it…….
Second up is “Pariah Radio” and it’s a banger, proving that speed and melody aren’t mutually exclusive
I’ve heard a few people say that this could be the album of the year and three songs in, “All Along The Uxbridge Road” may have sealed the deal for me. If you don’t believe me, feast your eyes on this…
“Speed Kills” is the first song so far that breaks the two-minute barrier and with a sprinkling of Generation X it doesn’t disappoint. While “Can’t Tell Me Nothing” might be a bit more of the same, “Trouble” slows things down a gear with a bit of a love song. A wonderful tuneless tune with a hint of Madness.
After a momentary pause in the frantic riffery, we’re off again…..“The Rise And Fall Of The Gang” and “Hold Your Breath” gets the fists pumping in oi-tastic fashion and when bands can play live again, “Moscow” is gonna rip your local club apart.
“Bruce Grove Bullies” kicks into a Kinks-tastic riff and with a healthy undercurrent of Hammond Organ, while the yanks will go mental over the bark and bite of “Blue Ain’t My Colour”.
There’s no way you can avoid the comparison of “Grenfell Forever” to early Billy Bragg but fuck it, I for one think it’s a real stand-out tune.
“Union Dues” rounds things on in a Quo-tastic way. And what a way to say goodbye.
So there you go, thirteen songs that’ll fit on one side of a C60.
Speed Kills is available to pre-order now on the band’s Bandcamp page on yellow vinyl (with cartoon sticker sheet), black vinyl (with colour-in sleeve and crayons), hipster-friendly cassette, and ye olde traditional CD.
Buy ‘Speed Kills’ Here
Author: Fraser Munro
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