Last Under The Sun

“Hooligan Jihad, released November 23rd 2012, by Last Under The Sun is fast-paced hardcore punk that doesn’t hold back. Last Under The Sun is a four-piece band based out of Birmingham England. They performed their first show in October of 2001, and continued to play in Holland, Belgium, France and Germany. Over the years, two of their drummers passed away: Neil Farrington in 2009 and Samuel Fry in 2011. The five-song album starts off with “More Helicopters” which has a strong anti-war message, clearly stated in the lyrics “I don’t wanna die in your fucking war,” and finishes with a two minute sum up of the album in their song “Hooligan Jihad.” The instrumentation in this album is solid. The beats are fast and in your face, clearly synced well through the many years of musicianship this band has shared. They blend punk and hardcore nicely, in that when they’re not blasting away their punk beats, they’re getting you moving with a breakdown.....”

"On this EP, Last Under The Sun deliver five songs of terror and the harsh realities of life. In that same apocalyptically bleak way that bands like the Subhumans and Crass have done in the past. But they are singing about our current day in a direct way “how many people die, for a worthless cause… I dont wanna die in some desert war”. It is all about our politically violent world, but at times it’s done with some humor like on the song ‘Hooligan Jihad’. How can you forget the lyrics “You can’t play crust in fucking flip-flops…”. Frantic and pissed off, members also make up Birmingham’s infamous Police Bastard, who had a split with War//Plague on Profane Existence last year. Which is no surprise as you could draw parallels in the style they play. Very much a no excuses crust styled hardcore with it’s roots firmly in DIY hardcore punk. There certainly is great production and tight musicianship on this too, without losing a raw punk sound."

“The first word that springs to mind when hearing this provocatively titled EP by Birmingham band Last Under The Sun is brutal. Relentless would be another good word. It is the sort of noise that would stun an elephant, or induce Central American Dictators to surrender. They would be nail on cert’s to be the house band in Guantanamo Bay. They badge themselves as a Punk and Hard-core band, and this is pretty much on the nail. Shouty or almost spoken vocals, short and to the point songs and that attitude are very punk, and it is all set to music that yes does have that melody that punk grasped so well, but it is nearly buried under a ferocious attack of blistering, thrashed up metal style riffs and machine gun drums that hammer away without recourse to such social niceties as pausing for breath. The band has been in existence in various forms since about 2001 and this experience and longevity shows, the sound is developed, the songs accomplished and it all has a togetherness about it.”

““I was so busy smashing up my room when this EP was playing that I forgot to review it, but this is a great LUTS offering and it's good quality hardcore punk metal. Not recommended for people who listen to shit, in fact this is the only music you really need””

“From the outset, the record smacks you in the face like a Molotov cocktail – and the nihilism that oozes through the lyrics suggests that this is pretty much what Last Under the Sun had in mind. The latest offering from the Birmingham noise merchants isn’t going to win any awards for originality or innovation, but it may pick up a few for sheer unashamed brutality. It has a true punk mentality about it. Not trying to be anything ground-breaking, it’s just good, solid, punk rock. It does though veer away from the simple in terms of the guitars and during the break-downs; they’re twisted and tweaked in all sorts of directions, adding additional layers to their sound. They have a sound that is undoubtedly tight, well-conceived and clearly written and performed by passionate and talented young men. It’s music to get sweaty to If you like your punk loud, fast and have a sudden urge to tip over a police car, there probably isn’t a better EP to provide the soundtrack.”

“Awesome "new" CD from this Birmingham Band....I Love This! This is their third CD and they're all good. At times emo sounding, reminding me of bands like Sensefield, but with more angst and more dischordant, at times they're faster and angrier but still keeping their melody. This was actually recorded in 2005 and came out early 2010! New recordings are planned I believe. Lets hope so. They've toured extensively throughout Uk and Europe, but still they don't seem to be at all well known, maybe because they don't fit into the trendy style of punk, these are way under-rated, seriously, you won't hear many better bands than this! - Steve”

“One of the greatest (if not the greatest) bands to come out of England in the past 10 years. That’s a bold statement and yes I made it because I totally believe it too. This band is brutal, hard hitting, powerful, with deep lyrics, genius, talented and amazing live too. I could go on, and I will. The guitars and riffs this band produce are world class and will fuel the hardest stomper. The best of the best at what they do. They are hardcore, they are punk, they are metal, they are a million other great things, Last Under The Sun are the band I want playing at my funeral. I think that says it all really. If a band makes you want to hear them after you are dead then that truly must be the ultimate thing.”

“Considering most of them are in Police Bastard they are much more melodic than you’d expect, but over the years their sense of melody and the superbly-crafty songs have slowly, but surely grown on me. The vocals do not make the listening experience any easier. They hold an almost spoken word quality about them that breaks into a shout on songs such as Summers Day and, again, they may take a while to grow on you. To all intents and purposes Last… are a punk band, but they’re a punk band which transcends punk and takes it off in a unique direction – one that defies labelling. Sure they have fast songs, and sure the drums can, on occasion, pound you into submission, but many of the songs are built around a slow-burning melody that grows and grows as the song progresses. And it’s this quality that sets Last... apart from the pack. And that, my friends, is certainly no bad thing. We need a few more band doing something “different”.”

“You will not get a suntan, but a nice ear blast. This is not a full throttle hardcore punk album with 25 two second songs. This is more a roller-coaster of sounds. From short 3 minute songs to 5-6 epic offerings, if you like punk with a more eclectic, 'off your head' edge; with quiet electronic element in live instrument form, then check this out. From subtle songs to ballistic missiles. Starts with Time For Your Leaving then dives into Aphex Twin live band style Painting Is Dead. The trolley song is what you would expect on the album. The punk/indie cross, thrashing the guitar riffs then to what sounds like like acoustic cuts. Great guitar riffs with vocals from Mark. The song reminds me of The Wedding Present. If you were expecting straight down the road raw punk, this will take you by surprise. Half of the Police Bastard line up on this album, which is the reason for the crossover sound.”

“Grosse surprise que ce groupe anglais, vraiment intéressant, bien produit et original. Je dis original, disons qu’ils n’inventent pas le fil à couper le beurre, mais ils ont intégré un maximum d’influences et les régurgitent en créant leur propre son, sans se soucier des codes de tel ou tel style. La base est plutôt punk-hardcore, mais le rythme souvent décalé, très émo (mais émo sans les voix criées, ouf !). On sent des influences Hc mélodique, crust, noisy. Pas mal de chansons me font penser au dernier album de PROPAGANDHI. Parfois, c’est les débuts de LEATHERFACE, ou des groupes ricains comme CONTRA, KRUPTED PEASANT FARMERZ, OPERATION CLIFF CLAVIN, ou alors des trucs emo-violence comme ASSHOLE PARADE. Je suis pas archi-dingue de ce disque, mais franchement ils ont le mérite de flotter au dessus du lot. www.ironmanrecords.co.uk (Yann)”

“Aside from running Iron Man Records, promoting and being founder of the Birmingham Music Network, Mark Badger also plays guitar in and manages Birmingham based punk outfit LAST UNDER THE SUN. New album Gone (Iron Man) has its fair share of hardcore punk thrash, ripping out numbers like David Icke, Colin Blakemore (single lyric ‘die’) and Out My Way that that last a mere minute, although the equally full throttle The Shed does clock in at an epic 38 seconds. But there’s also the bludgeoning electronics of Painting Is Dead, the early Husker Du shades of The Trolley Song and Summer’s Day, the metal grind of Backwards, Captain Of My Soul’s pulsing psychedelia and even a gentle acoustic folksy guitar intro to Time For Your Leaving before the stabbing distorted riffs take over.”