Album review: The Cribs: 'Ignore the Ignorant'

THE CRIBS: 'Ignore the Ignorant' (Wichita)

They really are the unlikeliest of rock stars. With their thick-as-pig-shit Yorkshire accents, down and out, cut and paste dress sense and sensible, mum-approved haircuts (well, Ryan's at any rate), the Jarman brothers have always seemed destined for the scrapheap, consigned to the history books as a band that just didn't get it. Even the addition of former Smiths guitarist and all round cool as fuck cultural icon Johnny Marr appears to have done little to improve their image; hell, if anything, Marr seems to have adapted to their environment, blending into the background and letting the longer-serving band members stick their ragged, over-long vest tops further into the faces of the general public. The Cribs are still very much the band that awkwardly ingratiated themselves into the dubious world of indie rock around six years ago, refusing to compromise their unique blend of scuzzy, punked-up guitars and glorious, soaring melodies for the sake of a few column inches in the NME Cool List. And that, ladies and gentlemen, is why they're probably the greatest, most subversive, indie band that we have.

On the face of it, 'Ignore the Ignorant' feels very much like familiar territory. This is no band thing, of course; the band have honed their sound to perfection over the years. Through the raw aggression of 'The New Fellas' and the anthemic splendour of their 2007 magnum opus 'Men's Needs, Women's Needs, Whatever', The Cribs have developed a style that is unquestionably their own, that sets them apart from the nondescript nobodies that tend to precede and succeed their music in indie clubs. To stray too far from this formula would arguably be a betrayal of the band's ethics, their very heart and soul. If the Jarmans had replaced their guitars with synthesisers, we really would've been up shit creek without a paddle... but then, that would never happen. Instead, they add another guitarist to the mix - the aforementioned Marr - to give even more muscle to their music. Johnny's influence is subtle but significant, accentuating Ryan's abrasive chops and ramshackle riffs without overpowering them. He largely sticks to rhythm guitar, providing the bulky power chords that transform 'Nobody' into an uncontrollable rock beast and give 'Last of the Snow' such a curiously pretty air of melancholia; the sort of ambivalence that made The Smiths such a potent force.

As is to be expected, 'Ignore the Ignorant' oscillates between bouts of ear-bleedingly aggravated bile and more reflective, nay introspective, numbers. The opening one-two salute of 'We Were Aborted' and current single 'Cheat on Me' perfectly encapsulates the album's power; the former quite literally spits and snarls its way out of the starting block, decrying the nation's apathy with accusatory lines like 'the mid-shelf masturbation leaves a smear on half the nation' and the rallying chorus cry of 'it's the same things that we're saying all the time!', while the latter takes a more resigned approach, working its rather miserable tale of self-deprecation around the best twinkle toes guitar work this side of an R.E.M. album. Still, while the track eschews the cacophonous rage of 'We Were Aborted', Gary's frightfully pained vocals ensure that the raw, almost sinister, edge remains, which in turn provides a through-line that unites the two styles.

This duality produces some of the record's most delectable moments: the juxtaposition of the unrepentant whirlwind of noise that is 'Emasculate Me' with the jaunty funk pop of the title track creates a deliciously playful dynamic, enriching the album's palate and forcing the listener to pay attention. The epic 'City of Bugs', meanwhile, manages to perform this feat by itself, morphing from exuberant indie pop to head-fucking noise rock and back again all within the space of six rather unforgiving minutes. The track seems to stick out like a sore thumb at first, interrupting the flow of the record between the sumptuous lethargy of 'We Share the Same Skies' and the unashamed ridiculousness of 'Hari Kari' but after a few listens, and a twist of the volume dial to maximum, it quickly becomes apparent that it's one of the best things that the band have ever recorded. As with the Lee Ranaldo-led weirdness of 'Be Safe' on the last album, it just takes a little time to acclimatise to its somewhat unorthodox charms.

'Ignore the Ignorant' sees The Cribs consolidating the success of 'Men's Needs, Women's Needs, Whatever', taking advantage of the addition of one absolutely superlative guitarist in order to intensify their sound. The album doesn't exactly traverse pastures new; Marr's contributions tend to complement rather than diversify, but this is arguably its greatest asset. Instead of panicking about their position in the indie Zeitgeist, worrying about whether they'll sell records in the current electronica-obsessed climate, The Cribs remain steadfast, doing their own thing, on their own time, on their own terms. The record is a cornucopia of the band's strengths, an aggressive and unkempt cyclone of calamitous guitars, awkward vocals and contradictory melodies. Is it a match for 'Men's Needs...'? The jury's still out, but it's a damn fine record all the same. (8.5/10)