Search - Cockney Rejects :: Power & The Glory

Different

Klaudio | 02/25/2004

(3 out of 5 stars)

"well, If you wanna start with the Cockney Kids try the first 2 cds (if you want oi punk rock). this album is slowler than others, but isn't stupid glam like next albums, is just different and stills good. there are really catchy songs like "on the run" and "it's over" and the last track is singed by the gonads vocalist. no bad but don't expect a punk rock oi album."

Not good

Patrick Stott | Rolleston, Canterbury, New Zealand | 09/07/2006

(1 out of 5 stars)

"While the Cockney Rejects were a leading light of the Oi! Punk scene, they were followers when it came to Metal. Apparently, by 1981 the band had learned to play their instruments, and one of them had grown a mullet. It still didn't make them a Metal band, no matter how many solos they played. And when I say Metal here, you need to put this in context of the time, rather than judging it by what Metal is defined as now.



These guys didn't quite seem to get it. They seemed to have learned their Metal from third rate NWOBHM rejects, Led Zeppelin outtakes, and AC/DC's lesser albums. In short, dull and boring. Let's face it - the Punks of old would have hated this, and the Metalheads would have fallen asleep. Placing this among its contemporaries, there is none of the chaotic energy of Motörhead, none of the skill of Iron Maiden, or the grit of Saxon. Hell, even Def Leppard were heavier back then.



It's not a total loss though. This is an attempt at Crossover before bands like Suicidal Tendencies and D.R.I. had discovered Metal. The title track echoes back to the Cockney Rejects of old, with a shouted yobbo chorus, and a more than passable main riff. Mick Geggus had also been paying attention in Guitar Solos 101, because he had a pretty good grasp of them, even if they do turn up in odd places. He even had a crack at the acoustic classical guitar style track with "Lumon".



A big problem though, is that the lyrics are still traditional Oi! Punk fare, which didn't mesh well with the proto-Metal sound. "Because I'm In Love" would have been better suited to an older Punk song or an old LA Glam style. "It's Over" starts as a power ballad, before picking up a very pedestrian, very middle-of-the-road Rock beat. "BYC" has a synthesiser running through it which even Chicago or ELO would have been ashamed of.



While `The Power And The Glory' is a valiant attempt to bridge the gap between Punk and Metal, it isn't all that good. The old Punk aesthetic of keeping it simple was completely abandoned, much to the detriment of this once semi-legendary band. The Cockney Rejects could easily have carried on churning out Oi! albums like The Toy Dolls or The Business, but instead tried something a bit different. This album falls down the crack between the genres, and is ultimately unsatisfying as either a Metal or a Punk album."