The Restarts
Uprising
Pirate’s Press
The Restarts’ Uprising opens with a lone female voice saying: “I don’t want you to be hopeful. I want you to panic. I want you to feel the fear I feel every day. And then I want you to act. I want you to act as you would in a crisis. Act as if your house is on fire. Because it is.” Then the band kicks into “Panic,” a song recalling Conflict at their angriest, and an excellent launch to a dozen songs protesting a multitude of political topics delivered with anger, passion, and drive.
The Restarts would be at home on Crass Records or supporting any of the other British anarcho-punk bands of the early ’80s, with a simple, thrashy sound livened up with catchy, Oi-like choruses, like in “Living a Lie.” The band displays credible ska chops on the intro to “Shut Doors” and “20 Years.”
But the real appeal here is the angry, thrashy punk that dominates the album. Angry about homophobia, addiction, and gentrification, among other societal ills, the Restarts Uprising is a fine, rousing collection of thrash with anthemic choruses that should inspire punks to fight the powers that be.
