The Ejected – Game Of Survival!

Randale Records

 

2017 seems to be the year of the ‘golden oldies’ for Randale Records. Cock Sparrer, Infa Riot and The Templars all have new albums out, and now The Ejected - who already made their comeback last year with the album “Back From The Dead” - can be added to this list. Proving that their resurrection wasn’t just a one-trick pony, this classic Dagenham-outfit created fourteen, brand new tracks for their latest album: “Game Of Survival!”.

 

Now before you put a CD in your CD-player or a record on your turntable the first thing you see is the artwork. You don’t judge a book (or record) by its cover, but I can’t beat around the bush – the artwork used for “Game Of Survival!” is laughable, to say the least. Especially when you check the credits and see it wasn’t drawn by a child (which could have been cute), but by lead-vocalist Jim Brooks. Let’s just say he is better in singing and writing songs.

 

Much better actually, because despite that the band’s sound hardly reflects their style of the early 80’s, fans who loved their last effort “Back From The Dead” will surely love “Game Of Survival!” as well. Classic, British punk with rowdy sing-alongs that is sometimes raging with pace on fast tracks like “One Way In One Way Out”, the title-track “Game Of Survival”, “Meds” and “Meltdown”, but overall mid-tempo and boisterous Oi!-punk with personal favorites “Evacuate”, the drunken “Let’s Get Fucked Up” and the not-so-serious “Alien Abduction”.

 

These old-timers still got it in them and I even favor this record over last year’s comeback-album “Back From The Dead” – which was pretty solid to begin with, but with “Game Of Survival!” they really take it home, demonstrating that the old guard doesn’t only thrive on their classic material, but can write catchy, powerful tunes until this very day!