I saw the Gang of Four when I was a student in Leeds, in a club space above the Merrion Centre on a double bill with The Mekons. They were at this point still borrowing The Mekon's drummer to complete their line up. Both bands had attitude, though a little shambolic Gang of Four had a stridency which put them a cut above the rest. Word was getting around about them in Leeds as a band to watch out for.
Unapologetically political they managed to meld radical uncompromising music to match it. All without it getting too worthy or preachy. They had two things in their favour, an unerring ear for a catchy riff or song and the wailing noise guitar playing style of Andy Gill. Both of these evident on To Hell With Poverty.
Five years on from their debut album Entertainment, To Hell with Poverty launched a move away from the stripped back post punk they'd been known for since they'd formed in 1976. Andy Gill is still the fulcrum of cacophony at its centre with his chainsaw guitar announcing a ferocious explosion of controlled feedback from the very beginning, which, as ever, is broken into by this thumping great rhythm, which has been poorly described as disco punk. But there was in this new direction still an avante guarde abrasiveness, politically punchy, with a danceable quality they'd not previously been known for before. There is a dissolute feeling for when there is nothing left of value, all there is to do is 'get drunk on cheap wine' Yep, I've known that feeling.
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