Enter Shikari
Common Dreads
Ambush Reality / Atlantic Records
15 June 2009
by Salvadore Fernandez
After shifting over 100,000 copies of their debut album, Take To The Skies without the help of a record label, it’s not difficult to see why there’s a hefty air of expectation about Common Dreads – the second effort from the Hertfordshire fusion mob.
Even if you highlight the fact that this strangely pioneering quartet have tapped into the psyche of every single chav out there with their sub-genre combination of hardcore and dubstep there’s no denying that there are a hell of a lot of tunes on Common Dreads.
Fair enough they’re hidden so deep, deep under the multitude layers of grunts, bleeps and musical belches that consistent and persistent listening is required to decipher those true tunes, but they’re there alright.
Going all the way from the crunching intro riffs to ‘Solidarity’ through the slowed-down brass- and percussion-filled ‘Wall’ and onto the glitch-fuelled anger of ‘Havoc B’ they display a musical maturity that was not afforded them in the past. However, being mature doesn’t automatically mean that one has to be overtly political.
While the opening title track is a collection of disparate voices talking about unity, madness and the future and there are various moments where people chant and moan about similar apocalyptic themes, Enter Shikari just don’t carry the kind of clout and credibility for anyone to really care.
It’s impressive that they’re not content with simply being a great-time band but when they’ve got brilliant songs like the aptly-titled oik anthem, ‘Hectic’, the swaggering, hilarious whistle-ability of ‘The Jester’ and the epic closer ‘Fanfare For The Conscious Man’ all in the last quarter of the album, they shouldn’t need to look further than just having some real quality.
Watch the video to ‘Juggernauts’ by Enter Shikari
Talking of progression, Rou Reynolds’ increasingly-spoken vocal forays have led him towards sounding like either a screeching Mike Skinner or a screeching Ollie Sykes. There’s no doubt that that newfound lyrical clarity complements the hectic musical melange behind him far better than in the past but with when it’s just semi-conveyed political and environmental commentary that becomes clear, maybe it’s best lost in the fug.
While Enter Shikari have long been a phenomenal live proposition, they’ve always lacked a lot of something on record. They have certainly sandbagged their position in the immediate British rock vernacular and many of their doubters will concede that it’s admirable they’ve achieved even this but they’re still more attractive on a stage than on your stereo.
With their insanely catchy singles all over the radio, however, you can expect Common Dreads to be flying out of stores and onto lavishly-coloured iPods across the country at some pace, whether you like it or not.
4/6
Sounds like: Enter Shikari, hardcore, rock, dubstep
Top tracks: Juggernauts, Antwerpen, Solidarity
Enter Shikari – Common Dreads tracklisting
Common Dreads
Solidarity
Step Up
Juggernauts
Wall
Zzzonked
Havoc A
No Sleep Tonight
Gap In The Fence
Havoc B
Antwerpen
The Jester
Halcyon (Intro)
Hectic
Fanfare For The Conscious Man
14 responses so far ↓
1 Jason // Jun 11, 2009 at 1:18 am
Kinda wish you’d loved it or hated it. This is too honest and accurate!!
This band is so bullshit haha
2 fester // Jun 11, 2009 at 11:46 am
bad band and an even worse review, are you paying a primary school to write these?
3 Luke Morton // Jun 11, 2009 at 5:12 pm
How the fuck is Shikari anything like dubstep?
You could be confused with drum & bass perhaps.
4 Johnny Callaghan // Jun 11, 2009 at 6:30 pm
Best band in the world, can’t wait for their album to come out
5 Mark // Jun 11, 2009 at 7:54 pm
I’ve had farts that sound better than this pile of wannabe chavs. Give up now and go back to your day jobs at Halfords fitting wiper blades and trying to sell ICE.
6 mark r // Jun 11, 2009 at 9:30 pm
Enter Shikari are great, studio work is innovative and energetic. live, I saw them in Brussels, full of enthusiasm a class act. I suggest anyone to see these guys. Narrowminded review in my opinion. At least he’s had his 2p’s worth.
7 Jason // Jun 11, 2009 at 9:41 pm
It’s narrow minded to say they’ve got some brilliant songs with real quality. Interesting!
8 Gordon Freeman // Jun 13, 2009 at 11:29 am
Ok
i don’t want to offend anyone BUT(T)
fuck you haters
they’re a great live band and are just as good recorded.the new album IS NEW,different style but still the same band
so maybe if you get out of your mum’s basement
you’ll notice that
9 Smair // Jun 15, 2009 at 4:29 pm
I love the new album. Some songs are a bit..’off the genre’ if you get what i mean, but overall i think it’s a top class album.
10 Markus // Jun 16, 2009 at 10:06 am
I’m sorry to bnreak it to you Luke Morton,but some songs off of Enter Shikari’s lastest album do contain elements of dubstep. “Musically, dubstep is distinguished by its dark mood and emphasis on bass. Dubstep tracks are generally produced at a tempo of around 140 beats per minute and in recent years have developed signature half time rhythms, often heavily shuffled or syncopated, and usually, though not exclusively, including only one snare drum hit per bar, often on the third beat.” – does this not fit the description of Havoc A/B?
And to Mark, obviously you have to right to think what you do about this album, however I do feel that you spouting garbage onto music review sites is your way of trying to overcompensate for something. Perhaps your a “wannabe chav” or want to “go back to your day job at Halfords fitting wiper blades and trying to sell ICE”, but just can’t. Therefore the only way to release this anger is to be a whiney bitch on the interwebs.
11 Raz // Jun 16, 2009 at 11:17 am
Definitelya lot of dubstep on this album.
12 RJ // Jun 21, 2009 at 2:53 pm
Why all the hatred on these guys? They’re brilliant, just because you have the musical range of a deaf man doesn’t give you the right to say they’re rubbish.
13 Luke Morton // Jun 21, 2009 at 9:01 pm
Markus I stand corrected then, I haven’t heard anything from Common Dreads (except Juggernaughts and Antwerpen) and both didn’t contain anything I would consider dubstep.
Also I am aware of how dubstep works
14 Dannyb // Jun 25, 2009 at 12:47 pm
I got this album a few weeks early thanks to a mate who torrented it (boo) and I immediately loved it.
Much more variety than take to the skies, and love Rou’s new vocal style. I just had to pre order it anyway, for the fact it comes with a live dvd, and its amazing (Y)
Worth your money.
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