Ex- EP 7 review

I’m not sure if Meek ever sleeps. His creative juices seem to flow 24/7 – what with writing many of his own books and compiling the works of others in the “For the Many, Not the Few” series, now onto its 8^th volume, the musical output from him (and the rest of Ex- of course) takes some beating.

The latest EP Ex- 7 is a case in point.

The three tracks here are of the now expected superior quality I’ve come to expect from Ex-, their melodic punk/NY garage-rock sounds complemented by Meek’s satisfying rich burr.

Ex- songs always have an intelligent lyric and an eminently memorable refrain or chorus. Why should this EP be any different?

The Big I Am

“For the Many, Not the Few” is the opening lyric on first track The Big I Am, a well-known uttering in recent years but as Meek sings “stolen from Shelley by the Labour crew”. The urgent riffing is underlined by solid bass and thunderous kick drums. “Entertain us, educate us, innovate us…”

Redeemer

Another charged lyric in track two, Redeemer, with yet another memorable refrain in “Christ the Redeemer, they’re gonna crucify me.” Religion is questioned throughout against the backdrop of more addictive vital guitars and a sweet melodic bassline. “If I can’t see you, you can’t see me, If I can’t hear you, you can’t hear me, If I can’t understand you, you can’t understand me…”. Make up your own mind but enjoy the music nonetheless. Another quality tune.

Ready for Anything

Chiming guitars introduce last track, Ready for Anything, with a strong message of positivity and resilience. The light and shade between verse and chorus is evident, with the negative and destructive people encountered on a daily basis reflected in the verses – “You idiot, you just don’t get it, you’ve ruined everything we’ve worked for…” &  “You’re a systematic hypocrite, you’re a two-faced backstabbing expletive…” These people are brushed off as a waste of time as the chorus kicks and soars, lifting the tempo and mood, and countering all the bullshit, “But I’m ready, ready for anything”.

After listening to these tunes, so am I…

Oh, and there is this cracking gig in November in Glasgow…