Album Review: Joy as an Act of Resistance by IDLES
IDLES make a triumphant return with one 2018’s defining albums. Bringing equal measures of rage and love, nothing about Britain today escapes their ire.
Joe Talbot, frontman and singer of Bristol band IDLES, may claim that his band aren’t “a fucking punk band” — granted, how punk can you get? Saying that, IDLES are so much more than your generic punk band. Sure, the Bristol quintet’s second album oozes with political commentary and satire. The riffs are heavy and angry. But for all the album’s seriousness — and, at times, sadness — Joy as an Act of Resistance isn’t just an angry punk album. It isn’t even just a hardcore or post-punk album, though it definitely has a lot of hardcore elements. This album in many ways goes far beyond what you would typically expect of punk, and it is one of the best rock albums of 2018.
Joy as an Act of Resistance is pro-immigration and anti-Brexit. It tackles toxic masculinity, and it doesn’t shy away from dealing with tragedy either. These are complex topics, ones that can cause division and misery. And yet, IDLES have created a roaring album that is of its time. How? Through sheer bloody anger sure, but, above all, IDLES have achieved this through love.
You wouldn’t get that from the get go. Opening track “Colossus” trudges through its first few minutes, the heavy thudding guitar slowly leading us into the album. It acts like a credit sequence to a film, guiding you in, and setting the tone. Talbot’s gruff voice angrily sneers “I was done in on the weekend” and “I’ve danced till dawn on splintered shins / […] / They laugh at me when I run”. The dread builds. The tempo picks up pace as the bridge comes. The guitars, the drums, the vocals all meet at one tumultuous crescendo. Talbot sings “It’s coming / It’s coming / It’s coming”. The dread and sneers rise. Suddenly, everything descends into near silence.
Then the party starts. Kicked to the kerb, but back for more, IDLES come back from the brink to kick ass and take names. “I put homophobes in coffins”, “I break bones for my people” — this is a band that’s here to fight for what’s right but party their fucking arse off while they do it.
All that in only the first song. Round two takes a deft swing at toxic masculinity. Throughout, the sharp riffs and smashing snares go hand-in-hand with venomous insults from the singer, before he ultimately backs off the man he’s been starting on. “I’ll shut my mouth,” he cowardly drones into silence. “Samaritans” also takes a hammer to toxic masculinity, likening it to a mask that is nothing but debilitating. Through songs like these, IDLES show that we can only overcome toxic masculinity and all its ill effects through something masculinity actively tries to suppress: love.
Elsewhere, the anger dials it down a notch, and is replaced by unabashed (and fun) taunts to the right-wing. “I’m Scum” and “Great” take on the Tory austerity and pro-Brexit government like no other band has today. The former, boasting a bouncing rhythm and sharp, jabbing lyrics mocks the right-wing. While James Bond and Dennis Skinner get a mention in “I’m Scum”, it’s the call-to-arms line “This snowflake’s an avalanche” that you won’t be able to shake for weeks. You’ll find yourself reaching for the lyric like a warm blanket when you watch the evening news.
Meanwhile, “Great” acts as a swift rebuff to the delusional fantasies of Brexit. It’s one of the quintessential anthems of 2018, with Talbot gibing that “Blighty wants his country back / […] / Wombic charm of the Union Jack”. The insularity and hatred that fuelled the Leave vote in 2016 is laid bare, the Islamaphobia demolished.
Although I’ve briefly mentioned it, you may be wondering where the hope and love I spoke of in this album actually is — so far, it feels like all we’ve had is anger. In “Great”, as in many of the other songs we’ve discussed so far (perhaps “Samaritans” aside), love is often difficult to spot, hidden as it is under all that rage. But the line “Change isn’t a crime” tells it all. The soft way in which Talbot sings those words acts like an olive branch for those who want to take it. Don’t want to take the olive branch? That’s fine, but know you’ll fuck yourself and everyone else: “You can have it all, I don’t mind / Just get ready to work over-time / Cause we’re all in this together”, Talbot jeers at the song’s close.
It’s safe to say that anger and love can be found in equal measure throughout Joy as an Act of Resistance; the two often work in unison to propel songs forwards. But these emotions aren’t the only ones that work together in partnership here. “June” exudes sadness and love in the face of losing a child (Talbot’s daughter, Agatha, was born stillborn in 2017). The Hemingway six-word short story “Baby Shoes. For Sale. Never Worn.” is used to startling and beautiful effect in the chorus. It shows that there is value in showing your emotions, in dropping the mask of masculinity and sharing your vulnerability in the face of tragedy.
However, the sombre, reflective elements of Joy as an Act of Resistance soon give way to pure anthems. The anti-racism, pro-immigration song “Danny Nedelko” is a work of passionate love for thy neighbour. Immigrants are given centre-stage, and what are they made of? “They are made of love”. The song asks you to understand that people coming together is a beautiful thing, but if you don’t want to share in that, you can fuck the fuck off. This a party anthem that demands to be danced to, and in doing so it will bring us all together in love.
On the face of it, Joy as an Act of Resistance may seem like your typical punk record, with its political commentary and heavy, aggressive riffs. But if that’s all you see, you’ve missed the point of IDLES. Joy as an Act of Resistance is about confronting and calling out hypocrisy and inequality in all its forms. It’s about hope and community. It’s about exposing yourself and your beliefs, confronting your own shame and what should shame others so that we can come together as one. Its self-reflection is its greatest strength, and its no-holds-barred approach to deconstructing masculinity is far more than punk has given us before. IDLES aren’t the only punk band to be dealing with topics like these, but nobody else does it this well. For that reason, IDLES’ second album needs to be in your life.
5/5
Want to purchase Joy as an Act of Resistance? You can find it on the official IDLES website.
