Album review: Bad Breeding – Contempt

Hertfordshire’s Bad Breeding are one of the UK’s most visceral outfits, harking back to a previous generation of anarcho bands while kicking up a racket that’s totally focused on the now. Contempt gives the lie to the idea that a close relationship with the Crass back catalogue can only be an exercise in nostalgia, its musical onslaught as raging as the attacks on orthodoxy that form its lyrics. That the quartet take their work seriously is evident from the way the album is accompanied by essays on homelessness, pollution and animal rights activism – a thoughtful approach backed by gut-punching tuneage.

If Contempt consisted of nothing but absolute barnburners like single Survival, rowdy shout-along Devotion, or the hardcore-indebted Liberty, it would still be one of the year’s best punk records. However, the full picture of Bad Breeding’s adventurous nature comes into focus on its longer, and often weirder, tracks. There's the gnashing dirge of Discipline, the title-track’s outright hostility, or the way Gilded Cage/Sanctuary swings between savagery and Slint-y introspection. Post-punk opener Temple Of Victory is probably the most accessible of these, but still sounds ready to start a revolution.

That tune decries the scapegoating of immigrants when the cause of this country’s decline stems from big business and a wealthy establishment. Bad Breeding have long shone a light on injustice and exploitation in the UK, and Contempt continues their almost journalistic work while expanding its scope to include the way capitalism is to blame for environmental collapse. Amongst its closing sentiments are these: ‘There will be no peace without violence… Fight with an open heart and sharpened mind.’ These are their weapons, along with righteous and distinctive punk rock powerful enough to rally many more to their cause.

Verdict: 4/5

For fans of: Crass, Rudimentary Peni, Discharge

Contempt is released on June 14 via One Little Independent