MCLUSKY initially made waves in the underground in the late nineties and early aughts, releasing three albums abundant with fierce, mid-tempo rage that, if we are being lazy, falls under the indie rock umbrella. Closer to the truth, the Welsh trio is a blend of post-hardcore and absolutely rabid noise rock not remotely bound to any one genre. To properly frame their place in history, they weren’t exactly a big deal back in the day, openly referencing the bar staff leaving as they were playing Detroit once because of a thin crowd. Since disbanding in 2004, however, the demand for the band’s music has rightfully grown. So now, twenty years since their previous long player, MCLUSKY is back with album number four, “the world is still here and so are we”, a tremendous effort that, without being more of the same, exudes the excitement of a high school garage band while boasting impressive musical growth.
Aside from a handful of reunion shows, the band remained silent since their hiatus. Its members went on to focus upon what were previously side projects, like SHOOTING AT UNARMED MEN, while also embarking upon new musical ventures like FUTURE OF THE LEFT. Guitarist and vocalist Andy Falkous, the sole OG member, has been accompanied by drummer/vocalist Jack Egglestone and bassist/vocalist Damien Sayell for years. “the world is still here and so are we” is the unit’s first full-length since disbanding, following 2023’s four-song EP “unpopular parts of a pig” which includes two songs from the new full-length, the EP’s title track which sounds like the soundtrack to a bunch of IT nerds exploding after being pushed beyond their limits, as well as “the digger you deep”, a number that entails a bass heavy JESUS LIZARD groove and vocals torn from Jello Biafra‘s DNA.
The Cardiff-based maniacs couldn’t have found a better home than Ipecac Recordings. Appropriately enough, label head Mike Patton‘s quirky, spastic vocals seem to be an obvious influence on “autofocus on the prime directive”. “the world is still here and so are we” runs just over half an hour, perfect for MCLUSKY‘s succinct style. Never mind the chaotic drive of the up-tempo “kafka-esque novelist franz kafka”, this schizophrenic delivery permeates the entirety of the album, which is actually hard rock in terms of pace for the most part, but so intense that it would otherwise be too overwhelming if it wasn’t for the reprieve of the seductive and sedative “not all steeplejacks”.
Lyrically, as with the music, it’s painfully clear that the band is playful, sometimes touching upon heavier issues, other times having fun with inside jokes, apparently. There is instant gratification for listeners throughout, yet there is so much to take in that one can’t be sure if it’s too high brow or if everything is all a joke. MCLUSKY, clearly, are marching to the beat of their own drum. The open-ended nature of it all creates a sense of mystique and makes “the world is still here and so are we” so damn compelling: it doesn’t matter whether any of us can fully understand what’s going on or what the point is when it sounds this good.
Source: blabbermouth.net
