The Enablers - Sweet Fuck All - CD (2003)

Labels: Newest Industry
Review by: Mike Whelan

It’s strange how when a band reverts to a sound that’s been tried and tested it can still manage to sound pretty new. The Enablers don’t use keyboards, they don’t try anything fancy, it’s just straightforward rock “˜n’ roll.

With an EP title like “˜Sweet Fuck All’ you’d be forgiven for thinking you were about to listen to some angry punk rock, or at the very least some brutal hardcore “” but, as I was always told, you shouldn’t judge an album by its sleeve, or something like that. Proceedings across the six tracks are much more laid back than the title would have you believe.

Okay, so EP opener “˜Tomorrow’ is pretty rip-roaring, but after this The Enablers slow things down by a notch or two, “˜Break Your Heart’ and “˜Better Friend’ wouldn’t sound out of place on something much more subdued. Vocally, “˜Sweet Fuck All’ could almost be a Bruce Springsteen EP. It’s sometimes easy to forget these lot are supposed to be angry punks who have swear words in their titles.

“˜Sweet Fuck All’ is pretty strong throughout its six tracks. The Enablers aren’t doing anything spectacularly new “” but as I said earlier this can still be refreshing “” and they still sound just as good as many of their contemporary peers. And one other thing, even though the cover art and inside pictures suggest this is going to be political, angsty rock, there is very little of that in evidence, unless I’m missing something. Overall, even without doing anything spectacular, The Enablers manage to sound pretty convincing “” definitely worth the few quid it’ll cost you.