ALBUM REVIEW: Black Star Brigade – They Think They Can Knock Us Down (Rock Em Dead Records)
Black Star Brigade were a streetpunk band from Austin, Texas, who were active from 1999 to 2006.
They released just one 7in EP and one album (on CD only) during their time together, both issued only in the US.
This is the first time the long player, which came out in 2003, has been released on vinyl, and also its first release in Europe.
Mark from DIY punk label and distro Rock ‘Em Dead Records, which has reissued it, rates this in his top three punk albums of the 21st century.
He puts it on a par with Rancid’s …And Out Come The Wolves in term of songwriting and musicianship, and I’d agree that if you like AOCTW you’ll love this too.
It kicks off with The Call, whose chorus “fight, fight, fight, fight” is a frantic call to arms, and the pace barely lets for the next 45 minutes.
Their high-energy streetpunk is the kind which leaves you exhausted by the end of a gig, but Black Star Brigade weren’t all about tempo.
There’s plenty of melody among the screaming guitar solos, rat-a-tat drumming, and wandering basslines.
Frontman Deuce’s vocals are raw and impassioned, and his bandmates’ backing lend them a real gang feeling.
The Rancid comparisons are obvious but I’d also liken Black Star Brigade to The Unseen, Swingin’ Utters and The Briggs (remember them?).
The tracklisting of this reissue differs slightly from the original release, but adds four previously unreleased tracks, and the music still sounds energised, fresh and exciting.
Rancid comparisons
For me the standouts are the back-to-back This City and Wrecked, where they ease off the gas a bit, and the catchy as hell A Shot Rang Out, where they sound more Rancid-like than ever.
In fact, if you like Rancid’s early records I can almost guarantee you’ll like this. 8/10.
- Thanks to Mark Rock ‘Em Dead to reissuing this album in the first place and for hitting me up for a review.
- They Think They Can Knock Us Down by Black Star Brigade is available direct from Rock Em Dead Records HERE, priced £18 including P&P to UK addresses.
