Ged Babey does us a punk round-up in Vive Le Rock product placement style for some newly released stuff available now in a politico-punk vein.

Paranoid Visions – Escape From the Austerity Complex (Overground Records)
16 track CD OVER130CD / 12 track LP + CD

Track Listing Austerity Crusade / On The Run / Outsider Artist / Politician / Poles Apart / All Systems Go / Statement Of Intent / Dangerous Rhythm / Split Personality / Tainted Ink / Rising Tide / (Don’t Let The) Rot Set In / Beatenhovans Symphony / Problem / Nuclear Victims (The Bombsong) / Recession Klub

According to the press release this album has already broken mainstream barriers by having two Top 10 Irish singles Politician (from Der Election EP) and the follow-up Outsider Artist (featuring TV Smith both of which, in a huge leap of public support, broke through the X Factor barrier and nestled at No. 6 in the charts).

Paranoid Visions are a thorn in the side of the Irish music scene it seems and have been around for decades – and I’ve been oblivious to them! They seem to be Ireland’s finest anarcho-punk pranksters ”“ like Crass with a more obvious sense of humour, or Chumbawamba with a penchant for gothicky gravel-voiced rawk instead of dance-music. There’s celticy folk bits, some Virgin Prunes-type goth-metal guitar and a healthy hatred of Bono and Co in their work.

Then there’s the guest vocalists on here; TV Smith, the Shend (from The Cravats), Zillah Minx (from Rubella Ballet) and Steve Ignorant. A veritable Who’s Who in protest punk and quite possibly the best album Paranoid Visions have ever produced, lyrically and production-wise.

A varied and powerful piece of work, but perhaps a bit too doom-laden for repeated listens.

All words by Ged Babey. You can read more from Ged on LTW here.