Current Affairs - Off The Tongue

Six years on from the release of that first perfect demo tape, Glasgow/Berlin four piece Current Affairs finally emerge with their debut album. That cassette and the couple of singles that immediately followed it were so finally attuned to a particularly sharp DIY sensibility they instantly felt like lost recordings from the original golden era, an uniquely authentic and distinct channelling of post-punk energy that made as much sense at New River as it did on the radio. Despite the significant time that separates then from now, Off The Tongue shows they've lost none of their vibrancy. If anything, they're a much better unit, coiled and wired, endlessly restless guitars aiming for the redline but never at the expense of melody, hitting a sweet-spot between the taut gestures of Pylon, the artschool smarts of first three albums Wire and the hyperactive glamour of Siouxsie. There's clearly no deadwood here, each member an adept and inventive player, but they're helped no end by vocalist Joan Sweeney's forthright testifying, a fully committed singer who leaves nothing on the stage. Breathless, unapologetic, razorsharp and right on - hard to think what more you can expect from a 'punk' band in 2023. Glasgow, man. Once again, the eternal hot spot.