iSound

There will always be a need for uber-punk bands, ones that are so hardcore they adopt the look, sound and attitude handed down intact from GBH, Discharge, and Anti-Nowhere League back in the early 80s. Rancid fulfilled this need on their first couple of records but got lost on their way to Rap Punk Land. Along come The Briggs, a band that like Discharge, features a pair of brothers in the lineup, Joey and Jason LaRocca. The Briggs sound like they're coming from working-class England but hail instead fromLos Angeles? Strange but true, these young toughs spitting nails and cranking out Oi! football choruses come from the land of sun, surf, and sedation. Immediately upon opening the CD I decided I liked the band: they ran a huge dedication to Joe Strummer across their booklet, that's class. The Brothers LaRocca share vocal duties, and one of them is eerily like a cross between Ian Stuart (Skrewdriver) and Matt Freeman (Rancid, who used to sing more). The Joe Strummer dedication is enou...