Apparently, the British are renowned for their sarcasm, but have you heard the American punk band Dead Kennedys? ‘Holiday in Cambodia’ makes Stewart Lee seem like a po-faced Top Gear fan. ‘Unpopular’, the new single by Kidderminster metalists WEAK13, would have fit perfectly on Dead Kennedys’ 1980 classic Fresh Fruit For Rotting Vegetables.
As it is, ‘Unpopular’ is taken from WEAK13’s second album Aluminium, which seems an appropriate title, as the single is (dad joke alert!) absolute gold. Frontman Nick J Townsend becomes Jello Biafra as he declares, “We stopped believing all the mainstream media / The news is a lie / Distracting you from reaching your potential.” This is especially thrilling for me to hear having just had the misfortune of reading some Facebook comments in response to a Worcester News article. Maybe if cruel & dim people listened to ‘Unpopular’, they would reach their potential of being human beings and develop compassion in their Murdoch-mangled hearts.
‘Unpopular’ is, like Nick J Townsend’s Batman villain half-shaven face, an artwork in two parts – it starts as a sarcy takedown of the media machine, then it lurches into a wall of nu-metal guitar and frequent screams of “dangerous!” and “technology for you and me!” Being somewhat risk-averse, I think that mosh pits are unappealing for all the obvious reasons: other people’s sweat, the high probability of injury, and so on. However, I would give a limb to be in the thick of a pit while WEAK13 smash out ‘Unpopular’ a few metres away.
It’s possible that Nick J Townsend is the most talented man in the Midlands – just watch the claymation video for ‘Unpopular’ that he wrote and animated. It’s ridiculously creative and funny – I mean, where else have you seen a plasticine scene of Later…With Jools Holland being ram raided?
In a sensible world, Townsend would be given the keys to Aardman Animations so he could make an epic clay satire of British society called Wallace and Vomit. While we wait for this masterpiece to be commissioned, I encourage you to detect Aluminium and tell your friends about your wonderful hoard. But don’t tell the papers.
‘Unpopular’ and Aluminium are out now on iTunes, Spotify & Deezer.
By: Neil Laurenson