Press

The Complete Press 1984-1994

BY Keith CarmanPublished Feb 20, 2008

It sounds impressive that The Complete Press would compile a decade of material from what is arguably America’s first oi band. However, given the underground nature of the music and ensuing lack of funds, this means a whopping 15 tracks for all of you 4/4 louts out there. Regardless, this beautiful post-mortem does boast a few remastered tunes, unreleased material and, more importantly, proves to recent generations that not all oi bands were mired in grunting about beer and smashing away like robots. Simplistic but inspired, songs such as "ASAP,” "Is It Any Wonder?” and "Revolution Now” feature intelligent lyrics, an upbeat drive and modest political leanings that prove this band were as smart as they were influential. Even the limited recording values only serve to establish this collection as gritty, ballsy and surprisingly enduring.
(Insurgence)

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