Album Review: First Wave – Toxic Rock ‘N’ Roll

Leicester based DIY punk band First Wave have self released their long awaited fourth full length, Toxic Rock ‘N’ Roll, the album follows on from First Wave‘s impressive 2015 release, All Bleed Red, sadly I’m not familiar with the two albums that preceded their latest release, something that I intend to rectify. Toxic Rock ‘N’ Roll continues their commitment to creating incendiary grass roots punk rock that is influenced by the bands that formed the first wave of the UK punk explosion. Toxic Rock ‘N’ Roll was released on the 8th July and the album is now available to order directly from the band’s website.

From the opening track, Ballad Of Billy Red, whose intro offers the only mellow moment on the album, you know that you’re in for some old school punk rock, As with the many of the original punk bands Toxic Rock ‘N’ Roll reflects the world around them, Bataclan Survivors, Gunpoint USA and Refugee all reflect recent events and the political and social upheaval that is currently engulfing the world. The lead single Berlin is an obvious highlight and the album’s title track is a call to arms for the disaffected, whilst Three Chords And The Truth, Eye For An Eye and Last Days Of The Empire embody everything that First Wave stand for. Toxic Rock ‘N’ Roll closes with Stooge, a track that gives a knowing wink to the bands that informed their sound with it’s fist pumping refrain of ‘hey ho let’s go 123’ and acknowledges the past without recycling it.

First Wave are authentic old school UK punk rock, the likes of The Clash, Stiff Little Fingers, The Damned, The Adverts and The Ruts can clearly be heard echoing in the compositions, but don’t interpret that as meaning that First Wave are an anachronistic throwback, nothing could be further from the truth. First Wave take their cues from the original punk bands but bring that style and attitude into the modern era, if you want to encounter the original heart and soul of punk in 2017 then you need to catch First Wave as there are very few bands that are producing this style of authentic grass roots punk rock.

Toxic Rock ‘N’ Roll can be ordered directly from First Wave here