Rating:
Genre:
Rock
Release Date: 07/25/2006
As far as songs go, this is
Conflict's best record. There are eight or nine great tunes here, all masterpieces. Unlike many of their records, the tunes don't all run together into one long screed (this would be
Conflict's
Fresh Fruit for Rotten Vegetables). The band was young and not hugely popular yet and so their songs were less cynical and more vivacious. No other
Conflict lineup ever sounded this tight, with the bassist, guitarist, and drummer playing off each other like the
punk equivalent of a
jazz trio. From the opening instrumental,
"Young Parasites," to the final tune,
"Crazy Governments," the band shifts from humor to grave politics to raging
punk rock to beats you could dance to. It should be noted that there was almost no humor at all on any future
Conflict records. These songs would always remain an important part of
Conflict's set and they later updated
"The Guilt and the Glory" with a version featuring a woman giving a speech about Western imperialism and world starvation, rather than
Colin singing.
"No Island of Dreams" is a great tune with some fantastic guitar work, while
"Meat Means Murder" is one of their first and best pro-vegetarian tunes, with many more to come. 1982 was pretty early to be singing about that sort of thing within the
punk scene. For anyone interested in
British punk rock who wants to hear a record that rates up there with
the Clash's and
Crass' best, get yourself a copy of
It's Time to See Who's Who.
~Adam Bregman, All Music Guide
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