Album Review

Rise Against – Prayer of the Refugee

• 8th Jun 2007

“We were the ones who kept quiet
And always did as we were told”

Brace yourselves for a rush of emotion and political rhetoric – no it’s the not the Republican annual conference, it’s the latest offering from the Chicago post-punk outfit, Rise Against.

Prayer of the Refugee is a rampaging rock monster with a biting message.

Good news for newbies is that the music is accessible and melodic.

It could be seen as the story of an embittered refugee tired of the patronising view of the West, as it tries to impose its will on so-called Third World countries – when all it needs to do is whip the IOU out of the back pocket next to its bulbous, lard-dripping arse and rip it up.

With it’s carefully considered opening and verse it sucks you, in and then like a demented hippy, leaps out at you and drags you by your hair into an alley and proceeds to beat the living shit and all of the remaining political apathy out of you.

It may not sound like an enjoyable experience, but trust me it’s great.

The cynics may argue that being political is fashionable at the moment and consequently counter productive, but so what, the more voices the better.

And this is an angry voice. This is the soundtrack to the G8 (peaceful) protests and the frustration of a generation tired of waiting.

It’s the sound of Summer.