Rancid - Let The Dominoes Fall

Rancid – Let the Dominoes Fall
Once upon a time there was a band who considered themselves “the only band that matters,” and for nearly a decade that statement was true. The Clash put out one magnificent album after another, pushing the corporation defined boundaries of both punk and pop until they smashed them together with their magnum opus: Combat Rock. And as always seems to happen in the music world, creative differences and personality clashes tore the band apart. And as also always seems to happen, younger bands picked up the fallen standard and continued marching on.
During the Nineties, two bands emerged that owed a tremendous debt to The Clash: Green Day and Rancid. Green Day took the Clash formula and mixed in New York Punk. Rancid mixed that same formula with West Coast Punk. Green Day eventually found their own creative voice separate from the Clash influence and emerged as a cultural force of their own. Rancid, however, has remained true to the faith.
On Let the Dominoes Fall Tim Armstrong’s voice is ragged and gutsy as he swaggers through punk gems like ‘East Bay Night,’ ‘Up To No Good,’ ‘Liberty and Freedom,’ and the title track. Armstrong’s voice has matured over the years since Let’s Go and …And Out Come the Wolves garnered Rancid nationwide attention. The vocal duties are shared among the band, but Armstrong’s voice dominates as expected.
M y first thought after hearing Let the Dominoes Fall for the first time was “Wow, they’ve been listening to some Social Distortion in their downtime.” A little research showed that not only have they been listening to Social Distortion, Matt Freeman has been playing with Social Distortion for the last few years. Freeman’s guitar work on this album definitely shows the influence of the time he has spent in Social Distortion.
Recommended tracks:
‘East Bay Nights’ - Pure ska-punk revivalism. This opening track is definitely an attention-getter.
‘Up To No Good’ - Just a fun little tune.
‘Dominoes Fall’ - This song is a tasty little nugget that gets the blood pumping.
‘Liberty and Freedom’- A wonderfully subversive anthem critiquing government and the media. This is what punk should be: catchy and political.
Let the Dominoes Fall combines the gutter guitar of Social Distortion, the punk lyricism and attitude of the Clash, and the ska flavor of any number of late 70s/early 80s UK bands like the Specials, The Selecter, and The Untouchables to provide a final product that feels like pure ska-punk from an earlier era. While this album is no world-shaker, it is fun.

Birmingham, AL
June 2009