ALBUM REVIEW: Dealing With Damage – The London Particular (Serial Bowl Records)
The London Particular is album number three from Londoners Dealing With Damage, who started out as a DC hardcore-influenced punk band but have morphed into something quite different.
Named after ‘pea souper’ fogs which blighted the capital as far back as 1820, it struck them as a good name for their take on the miasma of shit that’s going on in the world at the moment.
Their last album, 2023’s Use The Daylight (reviewed here) saw them begin to move away from their original sound, and here they take that progression even further.
The London Particular is influenced as much by late-70s arty, synth-based post-punk as previous inspirations Sonic Youth and Wipers.
Core trio Ed Wenn (vocals and guitar), Andy Myers (guitar and vocals) and James Sherry (drums) scrapped demos they made after their previous bassist left, starting afresh when Owen Cox became their new four-stringer in November 2024.
The current line-up was completed when long-time collaborator Steve Cox became the permanent fifth member, fleshing out the sound and bringing more new ideas to the table.
The first taste of their new material was Head Full Of Feedback, the lead track from a digital EP, and it’s included here. A bass-led tale of meeting a hero who turned out to be a zero, it’s a good example of their willingness to experiment with their sound.
Over the course of 15 tracks (including a zen-like intro and a couple of frankly unnecessary interludes) they take their post-punk sound into ever more distant corners of the musical universe.
Latest single The Inconvenience Of Democracy, inspired by overheard conversations at a local greasy spoon café and alarm at the swing towards populist politics, is an early highlight. I love Ed’s slightly off-kilter vocal delivery, especially when he urges “let’s recognise the big fucking liars”.
Nickey Nickey, driven by scuzzy guitar and awash with Hammond organ, is a paean to the reclusive Nickey Barclay, the former keyboardist for ’70s all-girl rockers Fanny, while Wrong Sometimes, a previous single, is a slice of urgent garage rock which basically says we should get on with life when it turns to shit.
The first big departure from what we expect from DWD is But Fear This Art, a part-spoken word acoustic number, but they revert to type with Hate Can Set You Free, a short, sharp slice of scuzzy punk.
After the blissed out Alienation, the ’60s garage sound is back as The Off Switch urges us to find a way to escape the noise of every day life, before Toolbox, which is half spaced-out stream of consciousness and half punk onslaught.
Suddenly we’re at the end, with a complete change of pace for the closing One Bump At A Time, full of gentle acoustic guitar and synths. It’s as far removed from melodic hardcore as anything Dealing With Damage have ever done, and an intriguing signpost for where they might head next. 7.5/10
- The London Particular by Dealing With Damage is available digitally, on CD or vinyl from Serial Bowl Records HERE.
