Honestly, what the hell is going on with Australia? Bloody country pumps out bands like Split System as if it were nothing, making everyone else trying to pen a catchy punk song look like stupid babies playing with their own sticky shit.
The band’s sound is deceptively simple: gritty, sweaty, punk rock where bluff, heartfelt lyrics are delivered with a mix of effortless cool and soul-shattered desperation. Thing is, though, it’s not simple at all, and their ability to wrest something fresh and exhilarating from the exact same twelve-bar blues wielded by legions of incompetents feels damn close to magic.
There’s the tough, smart, immediate eloquence of The Saints in here for sure, along with the busted-heart pop ambitions of The Buzzcocks and The Only Ones. But despite the classic traits and archetypal ingredients, ‘Vol. II’ sounds as shit-kickingly alive as if if the style had only just been minted. It’s a genuinely wonderful thing, and it really doesn’t seem outlandish to say that this record – like its brilliant predecessor – already feels like a modern punk rock classic.