This four track celebrates the ‘career’ of 16 Guns, a band which began in 1983 and finally called it day towards the end of 2017 although it’s not a band I’d ever encountered before. It’s also the debut release from the fledging label, Vulture Squad so a couple of landmarks to be noted before addressing its contents.

I must admit to being cautious before delving into the music as many bands that have been around for in excess of thirty years have failed (refused?) to progress beyond a basic punk output which is as repugnant as the views of a Tory Member of Parliament on what’s best for the National Health Service here in the U.K.

However, even though 16 Guns have a distinct sound forged from the second wave of punk which has been tagged as ‘UK82’ their brand of punk/Oi! is one that finds favor with me. It’s the strong guitar sound buzzing away that draws me in at first and then when the typical snotty punk vocals join in, I get the impression that I’m going enjoy this.

The song titles themselves add to the sense of the 1980s, a period when I really found my feet in the punk scene, with “Evil Man”, “Liar” and “News of the World” all reminding me of that period and the kind of songs other bands were singing. To be fair to the band, these songs could actually be from back then but the recording itself is very much of this century. The final track is “Punk Rock Stardom” which seems to be a vitriolic attack on those who might have used the punk rock scene as nothing more than a vehicle to stroke their own egos.

If you have any interest in the music that was coming out of the U.K. during the Thatcher years then this should be one to track down. The songs are punchy, catchy and sit as well with me now in my fifties as much as they would have during my teenage years.

https://vulturesquadrecords.bandcamp.com/releases