The Warriors

Operation Oi!

Written by: PP on 22/11/2015 20:24:32

The Warriors, who are not to be confused with the hardcore group from California, were part of the original Oi! movement in the UK, having formed out of the ashes of Oi! pioneers The Last Resort in 1982. They've released albums sporadically since then, the latest one being "Operation Oi! that surfaced a few months ago. As the album title suggests, the record is likely to divide music fans into two groups: those who think Oi! hasn't been relevant since Bad Religion transformed punk rock with "Suffer", and those who refuse to accept all and every step forward taken by the genre since the 80s who still mostly listen to bands from the first two waves of punk rock.

With shoddy production and simplistic three chord riffs, the album literally sounds like it was dug up from a time capsule that was buried in 1983. Then throw on top cliché Oi! lyrics - the "you disrespected me" parts of "Dead To Me" are cringeworthy - and other confrontational punk rhetoric from the skinhead movements, and you've got "Operation Oi!" figured out front to back. There are a few fist-pump anthems out there - mostly recalling the Oi! hits by The Last Resort and/or Cockney Rejects - such as "Warriors Come Out To Play", the title track, and "Good Old Bad Old Days", the latter which longingly calls out for the good old days to come back, but overall the relevancy of the fourteen tracks on offer is pretty much nonexistent. Oi! was always very closely attached to the original punk movement as an ideology, and since that is no longer around in any recognizable format, thematic concepts revolving around that ideology feel tired and, yes, old. Indeed, throughout "Operation Oi! you basically get the image of Stan's irate and out-of-touch grandfather in South Park, at least attitude-wise.

Still, if you live and breathe Oi! and find the style to be the greatest gift to music ever, you'll probably heartily disagree with this review. The classic Oi! ideology, musical style, and anthemic song delivery live on undeniably on this album and with The Warriors. It's just that the rest of the world has moved on, as should you.

Download: Operation Oi!, Warriors Come Out To Play, Requiem
For the fans of: The Last Resort, Cockney Rejects, The Business
Listen: Facebook

Release date 21.04.2015
Randale Records

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