Thirty-five years, and now fourteen albums, of railing against the establishment and providing regular, biting social commentary and Spear of Destiny mainstay Kirk Brandon could have been forgiven for dialling it down on Tontine, a fan-funded album released on Brandon’s own Eastersnow imprint, and just appeasing the masses with re-recordings, or watered down versions, of hits of yesteryear. Instead, the lack of giving a fuck that comes with such longevity and belligerence of vision fuels an interesting and diversely poetic selection of tracks.

Ably assisted by Adrian Portas (New Model Army) and Craig Adams (Sisters of Mercy, The Cult and The Mission), whose influences shine on several of the tracks such as the Death Rocking, big-chorus pump of ‘MK Ultra’ or the shoulder-twitching swagger of ‘Medievalists’, Tontine could comfortably have been released in the bands eighties heyday. Brandon’s intonations, at times not unlike Bob Dylan, may occasionally grate (he is not, nor never has been, what you would classically call a great singer), but with the urban folk anthems he produces, the main concerns are about imparting a feeling or an observation rather than a technical selection of notes.

 

There may be the occasion misstep (‘Brighton’, despite the vivid narrative, sets out an off-key and uninspired opening gambit), but there are more hits than misses, as the acoustic ‘No Other’ wends its way in a manner not too far removed from Lynyrd Skynyrd’s ‘Tuesday’s Gone’, though minus the country twang. ‘Monuments In The Sand’ stomps a post-punk tattoo, ‘Nothing’ emotes a rousing lead over an impassioned jangle, before closer ‘Peace You Will Never Have’ is melancholic, biting and reflective.

7.0/10

STEVE TOVEY