Here is something to ring in the New Year, it’s best served loud! For anyone thinking this is a band that has passed its expiration date then No Going Back is evidence that there is still a ton life left in Stiff Little Fingers. It’s been 30+ years since these punk pioneers SLF released their seminal debut album Inflammable Material (a favorite on mine). With a new record that’s been 10 years in the making, the working class warriors are still representing why the over-50s are doing it right – with just as much brazenness as ever.

Lyrically SLF are as politically charged as ever and it’s a crying shame that nothing has changed since the 70s and 80s; indeed with queues for food banks growing and public sector wages frozen whilst politicians agree a massive wage rise for themselves, the inequality in the country is worse than it ever was. We need bands like SLF to put our anger into coherent words, whatever your opinions about preaching to the choir, it’s important that we know we aren’t alone in our horror at the world around us. They attack individual selfishness I Just Care About Me, corporate greed a brilliant song Full Steam Backwards, politicians Liars Club, the Catholic Church Guilty As Sin, “a beautiful, angry song about the child abuse scandal:  “suffer little children and by Christ they did””, bigotry One Man Island and a personal song from Jake Burns about his struggles with depression My Dark Places. Musically it has the sound of the album Nobody’s Hero and is easily their best work in a long time.

The album ends with When We Were Young. Jake Burns (vocals and lead guitar) tells a story of how he was sitting in a bar with Phil Lynott (bassist) and they were both bemoaning how everybody was telling them they shouldn’t bother making records anymore, that nobody would be interested, and they realized it was exactly what they were told when they were first starting out. Keep it coming SLF, you have a lifelong fan.

Best Served Loud – David

Track List – No Going Back

1. Liar’s Club
2. My Dark Places
3. Full Steam Backwards
4. I Just Care About Me
5. Don’t Mind Me
6. Guilty As Sin
7. One Man Island
8. Throwing It All Away
9. Good Luck with That
10. Trail of Tears
11. Since Yesterday Was Here
12. When We Were Young

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