An album that has been on pretty constant rotation on the store turntable the past few months, Wire’s third album 154 is a stone cold classic!
It’s one that seems to tap into the art-schoolism of post-punk in a way that balances out both the listenable and the hard hitting (Total Control taking cues?). I’m not sure exactly what it is yet, perhaps they hint at a sense of humour outside the self seriousness of other “art school bands.” Or the pop hooks? Or the non-cliched approach to atmospheric moodiness?
Nic’s got a rant at the moment about how the first three Wire albums are killer but the FOURTH one is just as good. Maybe that’s where to go from here...
-Mitch (Repressed Records)