LIKE almost all purveyors of "lad rock", young Coventry indie aggravators The Enemy succeed by aspiring to something much bigger than themselves (probably sensible considering their pint-sized statures).
Proudly working class and eager to rail a
gainst the abject crapness of life in the lowest echelons of Britain that Blair built, the trio unite spitting, angry power punk with the sort of detailed pictures of stale, small town, council-estate life that The Jam drew so well.
Singer and songwriter Tom Clarke has none of Paul Weller's wit or vision as a lyricist, nor does he seem to offer any answers beyond base escapism through booze, fighting, sex and rock'n'roll. His knack for a chant-along chorus to throw your arm around a mate's shoulder, punch the air and swill a pint to certainly has people – mostly young men – responding in droves.
Clattering through a lean hour-long set comprising almost their entire debut album We'll Live And Die In These Towns they put in a noisy, swaggering, competent and honest turn, unfettered by pretension or imagination.
Finding a more expansive, optimistic second gear will surely have to be the key to their remaining a convincing prospect.
The full article contains 204 words and appears in The Scotsman newspaper.
