The Computers are one of the few recent acts that have emerged out of the dirty underground of UK hardcore and entered a more mainstream alternative music scene in England. Alongside other acts such as Gallows, Fucked Up and Dead Swans, with these bands being the focal point of many magazine pages in the past year. However with a sound akin to their peers in Gallows and Fucked Up its no surprise that The Computers are hitting the mainstream. Taking a more traditional, fast, aggressive hardcore style and sexing it up a bit with some rock and roll riffs and some experimental beats The Computers have a lot more depth to them than just a hardcore band.
With their album “You Can’t Hide From The Computers” coming out on indie favourites Fierce Panda Records, it doesn’t sound like something you’d expect to come out of a label that discovered acts like Coldplay and Keane. These 7 songs of fast paced music manage to get in your face but also charm you at the same time. Not since I heard Refused’s “The Shape Of Punk To Come” have I heard a hardcore record this experimental. Using a harmonica in the track “Teenage Tourettes Camp,” benefiting from the use of dual vocals and with the last song “City Ghosts” sounding more like an early 70s blues-rock band accompanied by the shrieks of singer Alex it makes you realise what musical potential this band has.
They haven’t been around all that long however they have a recent UK tour with Cloak/Dagger and a European tour under their belts. They’ve been praised by Kerrang, Rock Sound and Big Cheese already and probably have a lot more praise where that comes from. The Computers seem like the kind of band that could cater for fans of a whole plethora of alternative music. Sometimes they sound like Black Flag, sometimes they sound like Black Sabbath, sometimes they sound like Led Zeppelin and sometimes they sound like Jimi Hendrix with a little bit of Fucked Up thrown in. Appreciators of the many genres of alternative music should be able too appreciate The Computers.
My favourite song is “City Ghosts,” which you can hear above, as it sounds almost nothing like anything I’ve ever heard on a hardcore record and it’s extremely refreshing! “Teenage Tourette Camp,” and “S.O.S” are also ones to watch out for. “You Can’t Hide From The Computers” is not only a good effort from a fresh new band but also a refreshing burst of energy to a genre of music full of tough guys and breakdowns. After hearing this album I can’t help but wonder if this really might be the shape of punk to come?
Jonathan Teggert
To mark 25 years and 50 issues in the punk ‘zine industry, Southampton’s Suspect Device have teemed up with Brighton’s ZONkED! for a split issue.