Posted on: February 2, 2009 Posted by: anfnewsacct Comments: 0

The one thing that strikes the listener is that the music contained here is still as fresh as possible; there has been no dating of this material, nor can this be seen as merely a stepping stone from punk to the alternative music of the nineties. If this album were released as new material today, there is no doubt that the dorks at Pitchfork would be creaming their collective jeans. The opening track to “Something To Believe In”, “Shoot you Down” is a jittery track that is energized by the activist bass lines and dance-punk like riffs present; the supersonic vocals add a cherry to this track.

To be honest, on receiving this disc I had honestly no clue who APB was. I would hazard a guess that most casual music fans (and those under 35) are probably in the same boat as me, and this means that Young American’s re-release of this album is absolutely essential for the preservation of good music. The disc is easily the equivalent to anything that Mission of Burma could come up with, in fact there seems to be some shared ground in the jittery dance-punk mixture and funky, audible bass (an artifact of the Police and the Clash, possibly?) If this album had the right push when it first came out, there is no doubt that APB could have scored the next Synchronicity; the mixture of eclectic styles, an energy that is never snuffed out, and a radio-friendly shimmer to them makes the injustice of this all the more visible. If there was a very active press campaign to rebrand this album as something essentially new, APB could give bands like countrymates Franz Ferdinand a run for their money.

As it is, individuals will be able to see why exactly Franz Ferdinand has such a distinct style; years upon years of listening to albums such as “Something To Believe In”. During a track like “Summer Love”, the electronic sound of the bass line really seems to predate techno in a meaningful way; this sound seems to give rise to acks like Technotronic and even (again, storied) acts like Aphex Twin. This album is essential for those that wish to hear a missing link from punk to the present, and also provides essential new material for those who are looking for a good band, regardless of genre of age. APB do something with “Something To Believe In” that few bands actually can: come up with an entire album of hits.

Top Tracks: Summer Love, Shoot You Down

Rating: 7.0/10

[JMcQ]

APB – Something To Believe In: 20th Anniversary Release / 2005 Young American / http://www.yamrecordings.com / Reviewed 09 January 2006

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