RIFLE
Rifle (Year0001)
After about four years, a demo tape, two singles and a decently sized gigography, London punk band Rifle have a debut album, and one whose brusque, stylish songs deserve to find an appreciate audience. To date, it’s been hard to know exactly where they fit in: they’re not diehard adherents to DIY punk principles (Rifle is released on a Swedish label which also houses Viagra Boys and Yung Lean) but are likely also too clattery for most indie kids and not authentically yobbo enough for an Oi! audience despite having an evident taste for that sort of thing. (The artwork for both Rifle 7”s feature a “congratulations, you have just met…” graphic, imitating the sardonic business cards handed out by football hooligan firms to their victims.)
Across 12 songs, a majority of which come in under two minutes, the five-piece skate between garage rock, protopunk and on-the-nose late-70s suburban punk with a dexterity that suggests they can be plenty of things to plenty of people – assuming those people like brisk, hyperactive rhythms, wiry guitar and dropped-aitch vocal yawping, the latter coming courtesy of Max Williams. Cal Graham, vocalist of fellow London punks The Chisel – who Rifle toured with just under two years ago – lends his vocals to Worthless; here, as on Cut Me Loose and others, one or both of guitarists Albert Dury and Louis Bramwells get to rattle out splendidly rickety solos.
words NOEL GARDNER
