Album review: Anti-Flag: 'The People or the Gun'

ANTI-FLAG: 'The People or the Gun' (SideOneDummy)

It's less than a year since Anti-Flag had their last great big shout at the world with 'The Bright Lights of America' and already, they're back with a new thirty minute rant, just as angry, pissed off and unashamedly vocal as before. Except, there's a fundamental difference: their major label contract with RCA is up and quite pointedly, it hasn't been renewed. Anti-Flag are back on an indie (the much-praised SideOneDummy) and they're apparently very happy to be so; hell, 'The People and the Gun's middle track is a minute-long screamathon titled 'You Are Fired (Take This Job... Ah, Fuck It).' Subtle.

However, the invective bile unleashed here seems a little spurious when one considers that it's only as a result of contract expiration - the band played the game and didn't like it, but they never once chose to opt out. Surely the revolutionary, state-smashing anarchist monster that Anti-Flag claims to be would bite the head off the corporate behemoth during their bout of sweaty sex, rather than be its prostitute? Of course, this hint of hypocrisy shouldn't really matter, since anyone with an ounce of sense understands the absurdity of the concept of 'selling out.' What's the point in only getting your radical message across to a handful of middle class snobs? Shouldn't the ambition be to reach as many individuals as possible? Anti-Flag seemed to understand this when they signed to RCA and frankly, from the evidence of this record, they were all the better for it. The band clearly benefit from some polish: 'For Blood and Empire' and 'The Bright Lights of America' are damn fine albums, whose message is made all the more potent by a smattering of experimentation and a distinct bout of quality control. On 'The People or the Gun', these are lost; instead, the band try to 'return to their roots' but often end up sounding messy and cliched.

The record was undoubtedly recorded in a hurry: eleven tracks, thirty minutes of standard heads-down punk thrashing, all sounding like they were finished in one take. This wouldn't necessarily be too much of a problem (even if it does make things somewhat monochrome) if it weren't for the major lyrical clunkers. There is far too much time spent swearing ('The Economy is Suffering... Let It Die!' is ruined because of it) and not enough spent thinking. Oh sure, there's a message throughout and the band's politics are as thrillingly anarchic as ever, but their expression feels rather more amateur. Chris #2 is given far too much time to himself; whereas on previous records, Justin Sane kept the crazy bassist's guttural growls in check with his own, rather more melodic inflections, here, Chris gets over half of the album to himself and at times, it hurts the message. He screams uncontrollably over the tracks, somewhat nullifying the potency of the words.

Still, this is an Anti-Flag album, so there are plenty thrills to be had. The band's targets are as inventively selected as ever, and credit should be given for not watering things down now that every two-bit-socio-political-wannabe's favourite target, His Holy Bushness, is no longer the most powerful man in the world. There's still plenty to shout about - injustice doesn't disappear simply because the figurehead changes. So, accusatory, humanitarian didacticisms abound, as Justin and Chris take a pop at Christian Conservatism on the fantastic 'Sodom, Gomorrah, Washington D.C.', which makes sophisticated use of the right wing's own rhetoric to criticise them, and the bleak social climate on the stomping, fists-in-the-air call to arms of 'The Gre(A)T Depression', which has the sort of anthemic quality that makes earlier classics 'Hymn for the Dead', 'One Trillion Dollars' and 'Turncoat' so downright irresistible.

Under 'The People or the Gun's brusque, unwelcoming surface, there is a good album struggling to get out. Anti-Flag are clearly reacting against what they see as their mistreatment by the major label they were signed to for three years, and in so doing, they have mistakenly rejected all of the lessons they learned during this time. Yes, there is much to be said for wanting to recapture some of the messy, organic quality that characterised their earlier work, but let's not forget that records like 'A New Kind of Army' and 'Die For The Government' are patchy at best, and lack the kind of anthemic, melodic quality that most punk bands need in order to survive. RCA gave Anti-Flag a chance to refine their art, to make something lasting rather than immediate, and for all 'The People or the Gun' may be a thrill ride on first listen, it won't take long before it begins to lose its lustre. (5/10)