Tag: IENA Oi

Dirty Job, Klasse Kriminale, Kryzys and others: record reviews

Before the year draws to an end, let me squeeze in just a few reviews, mostly of records that people have sent or handed me in recent months. We’re still in no danger of ever becoming a ‘professional’ publication – as always, some of these good folks have been waiting for months to get their stuff reviewed. I hope they still appreciate the thoroughness and sincerity I’ve tried to put into these write-ups. Many thanks to Timebomb Records, Un Vie Pour Rien, Hellnation, Magura, Golpe de Gracia, and Manufaktura Legenda! All reviews by me this time.
Matt Crombieboy

Dirty Job: The World’s Decay LP
(Timebomb Records / Hellnation / Subculture for Life)

One thing straight away: this is my favourite Oi album of 2024, and it hit me somewhat by surprise – even though I’ve been following the band’s activities from quite early on. Formed in the Milan area by members of bands such as Ostile and, formerly, Brutti e Ignoranti and Stanley, they first landed in my adopted hometown of Bologna in February 2023, playing at the Forever Ultras’ clubhouse. They immediately stood out from the majority of young Italian Oi bands by maintaining a certain skinhead orthodoxy, both in sound and appearance, rather than dissolving it into ‘ultras rock ’n’ roll’ or coming off as just ‘random tattooed dudes playing street rock’. The music struck me as harder than most of their peers – not faster or heavier, but harder – and disciplined to the point of feeling almost a little militaristic. Ancient ‘war Oi’ like Vengeance sprung to mind.

Continue reading →
by Categories: MusicTags: , , , , , , , 2 Comments

Tchernobyl, Cran, Claimed Choice and others: Record Reviews

Abdul Bleach Boy, who used to do the bulk of our Record Roundups, has been incommunicado lately, i.e. off social media and doesn’t reply to messages. Maybe he’s going through some kind of spiritual crisis – hope not. Instead of a more comprehensive Record Roundup, then, here’s just a few reviews of vinyl that people have sent me, above all the continuously excellent Une Vie Pour Rien, once the best Oi zine and a big influence on Creases Like Knives, now the best Oi/punk label. Plus some random picks I came across over the past few months.

If you want to send us vinyl for review, contact us at creaseslikeknives [at] gmail.com. We don’t normally review digital files sent to us. Cheers!

Matt Crombieboy

Tchernobyl: Face au mur 7’’ EP
(Une Vie Pour Rien)

I wrote quite a bit about this Paris band’s previous releases, and although my reviews were thoroughly positive, I imagine a few things I said may have annoyed the band: persistent invocations of Brutal Combat, for instance – a key influence that Tchernobyl have long since transcended. It would probably be unfair at this point to liken their music to what I described as Brutal Combat’s “moronic, leaden Oi”. Yes, there’s a certain relentless uniformity to the basic structures, but within the rigid form there’s space for ideas and innovation. As time moves on, Tchernobyl immerse themselves deeper in what our guest writer Andrea Napoli has called the ‘Oi wave‘ and others have dubbed ‘cold Oi‘. Some of the sounds – e.g. the guitar lead in the chorus of ‘Unis‘ – even convey a Goblin-like vintage soundtrack feel, though Sisters of Mercy or Joy Division may be more obvious points of reference (unless you’re a French cold wave expert, which I’m not). Tchernobyl subtly expand the boundaries of the genre, losing perhaps some of the rawness of the 2019 demo in the process, but none of their hardness or severity. In a sense, they’re doing to French Oi what bands such as West Germany’s Razzia or Poland’s Armia were doing to hardcore punk when they infused it with bleakness in the second half of the 80s).

Continue reading →
by Categories: Music, Record reviewsTags: , , , , 1 Comment

This ugly old world: a chat with IENA

Remember hearing Rixe for the first time? It felt like a lightning bolt instantly pulverising a world of facile pop-punk ‘Oi’ bands – within seconds, any notion that they had a ‘right’ to exist was put to rest.

The debut EP by IENA hit us in a very similar vein. Although not actually a skinhead band, IENA certainly sound like one. That’s partly down to Marco’s vocal delivery, which one may describe as more domineering than punk singing – more “one step closer and you’re dead” than “fuck you, I won’t do my homework”. Continue reading →

by Categories: Music, Oi!Tags: , , , , , , 1 Comment