Slaves’ 2015 debut album, Are You Satisfied? was a breath of fresh air in a music industry which seemingly had very little to say about the state of the country, as it kicked back at Austerity Britain with quite some relish. Take Control may see Isaac Holman and Laurie Vincent on similar ground but, as with the UK as a whole, there does seem to be a bit less zest and exuberance about the pair of them than there was 12 months ago.
Sixteen hardcore punk songs belted out in less than three-quarters of an hour keep things motoring along with a hefty sonic dose of direct and muscular hardcore punk and topped by Sham 69-like shouty sloganeering. This may be quite enthralling on the likes of “Rich Man” – “He’s got a big house and a shit load of land” – and the snarling and malevolent punk blues flavoured “Cold Hard Floor”.
Sadly, it can all feel a bit one-note on some of the lesser moments of Take Control, and there are times when Holman and Vincent almost give the impression that they are making sure that they cover all of the expected punk rock bases. This is certainly not the case with punk-hip hop mash up “Consume Or Be Consumed”, though. Featuring Mike D, it sees Slaves add a hefty dollop of Ill Communication-era Beastie Boys to the party and makes you wish they had kept the New Yorker around for a bit longer.
While the somewhat variable quality control on Take Control might make Slaves’ latest set an album to cherry-pick rather than cherish, it's always good to hear angry young men belting out some lively tunes, and there are certainly some serious highlights here to make it well worth dipping in.
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