For many British bands, success across the Atlantic is hard fought and seldom won. Despite the unflagging enthusiasm of the British press, few bands have achieved significant fame in the United States since the Brit Pop explosion of the early `90s.
Such is the plight of the Manic Street Preachers, a rock `n’ roll trio from Wales that has achieved idol status in nearly every country but the United States.
In fact, the band started the year with a performance in Cuba with President Fidel Castro in the audience.
It may have been a cheap publicity stunt, but at least the Cubans know good rock when they hear it. It sure beats George W. Bush doing the mambo with Ricky Martin at his inauguration.
The Manics’ new album, Know Your Enemy, continues in the vein of rock `n’ revolution central to the group’s sound. This record is perhaps the most deserving of attention and stands to usurp Badly Drawn Boy’s The Hour Bewilderbeast as the United Kingdom’s best recent import.
Know Your Enemy kicks off with “Found That Soul,” a rollicking number that gets the album rolling in the right direction. It contains the glam-rock strut of a T. Rex song and the vocal immediacy of the early Clash.
The song doesn’t have much of a message, but few great rock songs do. “Found That Soul” would be a perfect anthem if it only had a movement to front.
The album succeeds in large part because of the musical diversity that the band practices. Moving from head-on punk to quiet pop to electronic breaks, no two songs on Know Your Enemy sound overly similar.
And while the genre swapping ultimately works in the band’s favor, it is tough to peg down one sound to the album.
The album’s lead single, “So Why So Sad,” adds to the confusion. It embraces the warm, jangle-and-pop sound of the `60s.
The harpsichord and lilting background vocals make the track sound like a Partridge Family tune-in the best possible way.
After hearing tracks like “So Why So Sad” and the dance-house beat of “Miss Europa Disco Dancer,” anyone who still considers the Manic Street Preachers a no-nonsense, left-wing rock act will be missing both the point and some superior rock music.
While the Manics have learned to let loose on this album, they retain allegiance to noble political and social causes. The band turns its attention to America’s civil-rights past with “Let Robeson Sing,” a touching tribute to singer and activist Paul Robeson.
Singer Nicky Wire delivers all sincerity and no sap as he belts, “A voice so pure, a vision so clear/ I’ve gotta learn to live like you , learn to sing like you.”
Know Your Enemy ends with “Freedom of Speech Won’t Feed My Children,” an attack on the pseudo-activism preached by the Beastie Boys and other Hollywood liberals.
Sung from the standpoint of a person in one of the “developing nations” that activists strive to liberate through universal human rights, the song turns the focus toward the human necessities often ignored in the lofty pursuits of equality.
It is a little self righteous of the Manic Street Preachers to condemn these activists for their legitimate purposes, but the song succeeds in giving voice to the voiceless.
For the first-time listener, Know Your Enemy should be an enjoyable introduction to the Manic Street Preachers: The songs move; the sound is varied; and there is some substance in the overall message. Aside from making some of the best rock music around, the band’s underground status will make you an instant hipster for even knowing the Manic’s name.
But there is a feeling that the band is capable of much more than the album delivers; the often-nonsensical lyrics show a lack of invention, and the political message lacks focus.
Though there may be some pieces missing, Know Your Enemy remains a satisfying experience and is a solid album. A-
