(December 2023) Episode 538 is THE STRANGLERS. I have this odd fascination with the late 1970s UK musical moment, when vocalists chose to assert rather than deemphasize their British accents; Johnny Rotten’s God Save the Queen being a prime example. The Stranglers were among the burst of groups that emerged from the punk or punk-adjacent scene featuring angular and bass-driven beats and think accents: Wire, The Jam, Buzzcocks, The Clash, Gang of Four, the Damned, etc. Lovely stuff. The Stranglers’ first three albums are classics of this style, but they also stood apart, neither political nor in-your-face. Their sound evolved over the years, not chasing fads but also not plowing new ground. They’ve stayed active until the present, and while the recordings are successively less interesting, they’re not bad. “Golden Brown” is both their most popular and most unusual song with its neo-baroque pop sound.
Favourite album: No More Heroes
Favourite song: (Get A) Grip (On Yourself)
Compared to expectations: ↑
Recommendation: Listen to the first three albums.
Opus Project 
From your perspective they have an accen’ bu’ maybe to them they are speaking more truly than bands who try to bury their accen’ can be though’ of as cultural sellouts?
LikeLike