UK Subs: XXIV

Charlie don’t surf: punk perennials stick to their guns.

You can trust Louder Our experienced team has worked for some of the biggest brands in music. From testing headphones to reviewing albums, our experts aim to create reviews you can trust. Find out more about how we review.

When The UK Subs gatecrashed the charts in 1979 with Stranglehold, few commentators thought their punk convictions would last until Christmas.

Thirty four years later, Charlie Harper’s determination to release an album for every letter of the alphabet is close to completion. Implosion 77 and Rabid are righteous blasts of speed-punk fury, while a rollicking Las Vegas Wedding is a boozy update of Party In Paris.

The highlight, though, is the anthemic Coalition Government Blues, where the 67-year-old Harper dismantles the current Parliamentary crop in between searing blasts of harmonica. It’s enough to make a younger generation of say-nothing musicians hang their heads in shame.

Paul Moody is a writer whose work has appeared in the Classic Rock, NME, Time Out, Uncut, Arena and the Guardian. He is the co-author of The Search for the Perfect Pub and The Rough Pub Guide.