Album Review

New Model Army – Anthology

• 3rd Nov 2010

2 discs to celebrate 30 years of New model Army. And it is 30 songs we get covering Goldies like “Vengeance” as well as their most recent accomplishments such as “Today Is A Good Day.” And they have remained as politically relevant today as they were when they first started out. But then if you are like minded and know your history and your current state of affairs it isn’t hard to point out what is up with the world. NMA do it beautifully through lyrics and weave some very exciting music around it.

While it is nice to hear some lesser know tracks like “Masterrace” and “ A Liberal Education” there is a worry about what has happened to some of the more obvious choices. Where is “No rest,” “Stupid Questions,” “Get Me Out,” “Space,” “Whirlwind,” and “Vanity?” Ok so most of them are on the Impurity album, and they have at least provided us with “Purity,” “Lurstapp.”

Also watch out just in case they have misprinted the discs. According to the paper copy and the electronic text onscreen the song said “Someone Like Jesus” and yet it sounded much more 100% to be “Living in the Rose” which actually came after. Not the bands fault, but a clumsy mistake on the production side of the disc.

I don’t want to sound like I’m being a pain here. But the album Anthology clearly states the dates 1980-2010. But it is worth pointing out that this refers to how long the band has been together. As for the material on the discs: The earliest tracks are from 1984 and the latest 2009. So it’s more like 25 years of music than 30.

Ok now that I’ve finished being pedantic I’ll shut up and get back down on my knees and worship years and years of great song-writing and music. Because as much as we niggle about the things we love, we must also take the time to whole heartedly kiss its rear end for what it all is.

The impact of the music hasn’t lost any of its charm. And New Model Army have that thing where all you need is a couple seconds to instantly recognise the song. And they have had so many classics that fall under this banner.

30 years of New Model, yes I think they are entitled to this two disc release. They have also mixed up the year ordering of the tracks so you are not merely listening to a linear progression. It’s a fascinating and consistently surprising listen. And it by no means is signifying anything closely resembling the end.