CD review SICK OF IT ALL ‘Wake the Sleeping Dragon!’

(9/10) Music and art is the opposite of a soulless carrier of notes and tones. Music is a vehicle that transports feelings and emotion – from love to anger and back. In this context Sick Of It All’s 11th album hits again bull’s eye. ‘Wake the Sleeping Dragon!’ doesn’t miss out on anything.  The NYC hardcore veterans reveal with ‘Wake the Sleeping Dragon!’ an album that is furious and wild. 

The quartet boils down hardcore to its essence with 17 songs that belong to the best the fourpiece band released till today. Most of the tracks of the album are between one and two minutes long and there is no unnecessary ‘decoration’ attached to the songs. Tracks like ‘Robert Moses was Racist’ and ‘Beef Between Vegans’ are dense and spot-on hardcore anthems with ‘Self Important Shithead’  being another example of focussed hardcore power. In not even a minute the band fires on all cylinders and wows.

As with earlier releases also ‘Wake the Sleeping Dragon!’ contains songs with lyrics that are meaningful and not just empty words. ‘Bull’s Anthem’ addresses animal abuse and inner demons are the base for the lyrics of ‘Break Free (Break Free’). Furthermore, it’s the current status of society that acts as a fuel for many of the songs on ‘Wake the Sleeping Dragon!’. However, Sick Of It All takes things from a wider perspective which manifests itself in songs like ‘That Crazy White Boy Shit’, a song about musical heroes of band members.

‘Wake the Sleeping Dragon!’ is a next strong statement by NYC hardcore pioneers. Sick Of It All belongs to the major league of US hardcore and their newest album shows again why this is the case. The quartet got older, but for sure not calmer.

 

(9/10)

 

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