Free LSD

So a new OFF! album just came out, which was a surprise to me as I had no idea that the band still existed. Their last record came out back in 2014 and I honestly barely played it. After three albums that kinda sounded the same, I just started to find it a little boring, and in the last 8 years I have probably played one of their records once. Sure, back in 2010 they were super cool, but after 4 years it felt like the novelty had worn off. So why on earth did I find myself getting excited when a new album was announced earlier this year? I guess because it had been a while and I felt that maybe a new OFF! record in 2022 would sound as exciting as that first one did twelve years ago.

The record is called 'Free LSD' and, like most records in 2022, it was pressed on quite a few different colours. The most limited ones sold at out preorder stage, but I had no interest in those are they were crappy swirly things. There were also some more 'plain' colours (purple for indie stores, clear orange and the most common is clear blue). And even though I thought that the clear blue looked pretty cool, I took a chance and bought a sealed one on 'peacock green' (aka 'green') because it was a bit more limited. When I opened it up I was stoked because it looks pretty fucking awesome. This is a Rough Trade exclusive, although it's not clear how many copies exist. Their website says there are 300, whereas the sticker on the shrinkwrap says there are 400.

So it seems that in the last eight years OFF! have forgotten what they are supposed to sound like, to the point where this record sounds pretty nothing like their old records at all. This is probably to do with there being a new drummer and bassist in the band. I've been playing this every day for the last couple of weeks, and I still can't make my mind up on it. Even though I was kinda bored of their sound back in 2014, I'm not sure if I am happy that they now sound completely different. Ok, so Keith's vocals are still the same, but the music is darker and slower. It's actually quite interesting and I don't dislike it, but I think the main issue for me is that with 20 songs that go on for nearly 40 minutes, it jsut feels a little too long to keep my attention.