Homebrew - Last Orders (Cover Artwork)
Staff Review

Homebrew

Last Orders (2011)

Bombed Out Records / X Fist Re


Despite having a reputation of having a bit of a thing for alcohol, which to be fair is born out both by the name of the band itself and also many of the song titles that have been written ("Fuck Revolution … I Need A Drink" and "This Seat's Taken" being two on this, the band's second album), it would be harsh to actually dismiss Homebrew as a one trick pony in terms of what it actually does. Sure, there is no denying that the music is alcohol-fueled and that the demon drink features heavily throughout the band's output but once you've drunk deeply at the well of Homebrew you will find more than just a group of ciderpunks, hammering away at their instruments in an alcoholic haze.

What is evident on further inspection is that Homebrew manages to connect a love of punk rock and alcohol with a social and political awareness that makes this more than just three guys having a laugh. The targets of the band are many, and one that resonates with me (despite supporting a football team from the lower echelons of the game) is the way money is ruining football in the U.K. on "Remote Control," where the Sky TV empire gets a bit of a lambasting and when Dave Albatross sings "the right to assemble at a place we can't afford" that rings true for many "normal" football fans who are almost being forced to subscribe to Sky's services in order to watch their team play rather than do so in the flesh.

There is also a nod towards another band that was occasionally tagged under the whole ciderpunk banner, with a cover of "King For A Day" by Chaos UK, a Bristol-based band and for me that city was always synonymous with cider-swilling punks back in the 1980s. I still love the line "King for a day, skint for a fortnight" from that song and this version stands up well to the original.

Musically, despite a good production job, this has quite a coarseness to the sound and I suspect that this is a case of the band preferring that rougher round the edges quality as it fits in perfectly with what Homebrew is trying to do. There is no eschewing of melody and/or catchiness here either as the hooks are prominent throughout the 10 tracks. A rollicking good time is sure to be had listening to Last Orders.

This is fists in the air music, or maybe just the one fist as one hand would need to be holding on firmly to a pint of your favorite poison as the band steamrolls through a set of punk rock that should have any crowd singing along in no time at all.