THE ALARM – WAЯ (2021) *EXCLUSIVE*
One of the best and unfairly unknown British bands from the ’80s is without a doubt THE ALARM. Always fronted by charismatic Mike Peters, the group is back with a new album titled “WAЯ“. And what a great album it is.
You might have thought that Peters would have lost his hunger after fronting the Welsh band over the last 35 years plus – far from it on this surprise, triumphant new album. The songwriter has lived through enough personal upsets over the years to let something like Covid 19 get him down.
The band captures today’s raw emotions – WAЯ echoes The Alarm 1991’s album ‘Raw’, with a deliberately spelled backwards graphic – not only in the lyrics, but also musically, with intense, rocking spirit.
Peters had been working on a 30th anniversary remake of the ‘Raw’ album, intending to give those songs a fresh spin. It’s an album he felt never quite gelled the way it should have in 1991, partly due to tensions in the band as well as a changing musical climate.
However, with the pandemic, Peters scrapped those plans.
Recorded, written and mastered in 50 days with the process only starting at the beginning of January this year, Peters and the band have come up with a selection of songs that lyrically deal with what we have all witnessed over the last 12 months from Covid to the storming of Washington by Trump’s supporters.
“Whether you like it or not, the world has changed forever” cries out Peters on the explosive opening track ‘Protect and Survive’, with its chugging riff and pointed lyrics bursting out of the speakers with a passionate fist-in-the-air singalong quoting directly from today’s headlines.
Like the majority of the album it needs to be played loud. Just when you were beginning to think who was going to record an album to document the living history we have endured, The Alarm come along – and as always, keep the faith.
“Tribes (Stop the War)” and “Crush” stand as ‘80s contemporary redux calls to action: “You can’t crush a movement/you can’t crush you and I/we won’t be denied.”
Classic guitar riffs and synths doing their best impression of Led Zeppelin’s string section bolster the rallying cry of ‘We Got This’, while the cleverly chosen Massive Attack cover, “Safe from Harm” features Skindred’s Benji Webbe, a fellow Welshmen, growling the song’s “serious, infectious and dangerous” hook line, alongside Peters’ melodic interpretation.
‘Warriors’ might be a distant cousin of All Along The Watchtower; a vision of a dystopian/apocalyptic landscape. Packed with warnings and handy little tips from Chairman Peters – “don’t let yourself be fooled by your Gods and your demons” – it’s perhaps no surprise that The Alarm has earned a reputation for fist-pumping defiance.
The Alarm really surprised us with “WAЯ”. Heavy guitar anthems fly by, all accompanied by trademark Peters passion and commitment. The add some crazy synths on all songs, and the drum sound varies from track to track.
Even if you don’t care about the lyrics – which are really good btw – “WAЯ” rocks you with intense riffs and colorful arrangements.
Highly Recommended
01 – Protect and Survive
02 – We Got This
03 – Tribes (Stop the War)
04 – Still Unsafe
05 – Crush
06 – Warriors
07 – Fail
08 – Gods and Demons
09 – Safe from Harm (feat Benji Webbe)
10 – War (It’s Not over yet)
Mike Peters – vocals, guitar, bass
James Stevenson – guitars, synths
Smiley – drums
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