26-01-2020, 08:32
WIRE ~ Mind Hive
![[Image: 220px-Wire_-_Mind_Hive.jpg]](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/b/b1/Wire_-_Mind_Hive.jpg/220px-Wire_-_Mind_Hive.jpg)
And now for something completely different. I hadn’t heard Wire at all until last year when persuaded I should take the time to do so by Fred de Vries who is an admirer of the progressive post punkers. I listened to Silver/Lead and was obliged to admit that they have something, even although the chances of them growing on me seem slim, but then again, stranger things have probably happened!
They have a compelling raw energy and ability, I’ll give ‘em that – an urgency; and despite having been active since the 70’s, they somehow don’t sound dated, just grown up - intelligent lyrics and no profanity (who sings about oligarchy?). Three core members have been around since the band’s inception in 1976 so they understand how to work together and as a result there’s a polish which otherwise might not have been. They appear to have been reasonably experimental in their playing over the years and they’re not stopping now - Wiki labels them as ‘art punk’ for this release.
Although they wouldn’t make it onto my desert island, I can see how they have retained their following. And they make some serious social and political commentary, as any good punk band should. There is quite a lot of synth happening on this album as well as regular instrumentation.
Yes, I’m a bit dyed in the wool in terms of personal preferences and simply will not listen to anything I don’t think I can abide (there’s enough I really do want to listen to and time is fleeting!), so while I’ve never thought of post punk as being for me, I do have to concede that these guys make a solid case for a certain edgy proficiency.
MH and CH – you might like this one. Incidentally, I had to listen twice – the album kinda settled on my ears the second time around – started making sense to my brain – first listen was confusing for me - I guess it's all about adaptation! Be prepared for abrupt endings, lol! I quite like that actually – they’ve finished saying whatever it was they wanted to say. End of. No mucking about.
“Off the Beach” - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Hy2j_6pfkR0
“Primed and Ready” - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tlIPfeiToKU
The final track “Humming” - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=72vTexeH6ew
And “Cactused” – shows you who they are which is quite fascinating ...
Lyrics
The collective hive-mind
Algorithmically scanning
Defending exploration
And language hair extensions
You’d better watch your step
You shouldn’t place your bet
You may have played your hand
You didn’t gauge demand
It’s a throw-down
It’s a tag-team angle
It’s a face-off
Then a cheap shot low blow
Figuratively speaking
The meaning: quite porous
You are well-versed in verses
And chorus the chorus
Cactused informants
Scaling involvement
Discard new litanies
Deride conventions
And now for something completely different. I hadn’t heard Wire at all until last year when persuaded I should take the time to do so by Fred de Vries who is an admirer of the progressive post punkers. I listened to Silver/Lead and was obliged to admit that they have something, even although the chances of them growing on me seem slim, but then again, stranger things have probably happened!
They have a compelling raw energy and ability, I’ll give ‘em that – an urgency; and despite having been active since the 70’s, they somehow don’t sound dated, just grown up - intelligent lyrics and no profanity (who sings about oligarchy?). Three core members have been around since the band’s inception in 1976 so they understand how to work together and as a result there’s a polish which otherwise might not have been. They appear to have been reasonably experimental in their playing over the years and they’re not stopping now - Wiki labels them as ‘art punk’ for this release.
Although they wouldn’t make it onto my desert island, I can see how they have retained their following. And they make some serious social and political commentary, as any good punk band should. There is quite a lot of synth happening on this album as well as regular instrumentation.
Yes, I’m a bit dyed in the wool in terms of personal preferences and simply will not listen to anything I don’t think I can abide (there’s enough I really do want to listen to and time is fleeting!), so while I’ve never thought of post punk as being for me, I do have to concede that these guys make a solid case for a certain edgy proficiency.
MH and CH – you might like this one. Incidentally, I had to listen twice – the album kinda settled on my ears the second time around – started making sense to my brain – first listen was confusing for me - I guess it's all about adaptation! Be prepared for abrupt endings, lol! I quite like that actually – they’ve finished saying whatever it was they wanted to say. End of. No mucking about.
“Off the Beach” - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Hy2j_6pfkR0
“Primed and Ready” - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tlIPfeiToKU
The final track “Humming” - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=72vTexeH6ew
And “Cactused” – shows you who they are which is quite fascinating ...
Lyrics
The collective hive-mind
Algorithmically scanning
Defending exploration
And language hair extensions
You’d better watch your step
You shouldn’t place your bet
You may have played your hand
You didn’t gauge demand
It’s a throw-down
It’s a tag-team angle
It’s a face-off
Then a cheap shot low blow
Figuratively speaking
The meaning: quite porous
You are well-versed in verses
And chorus the chorus
Cactused informants
Scaling involvement
Discard new litanies
Deride conventions
"The surest sign that intelligent life exists elsewhere in the universe is that it has never tried to contact us." ~ Bill Watterson
![[Image: giphy.gif?cid=790b7611a12e33a78c40088f6e...=giphy.gif]](https://media3.giphy.com/media/VbyXgohzJCIRw6uqiP/giphy.gif?cid=790b7611a12e33a78c40088f6e1867a8acc7d795170b3733&rid=giphy.gif)
