ALTERNATIVE TV Schallplatten & CDs

Review: Originally formed in 1977 (the year punk supposedly died), the Mark Perry-led collective known as Alternative TV are often cited as one of, if not, the first act to marry reggae rhythms to punk rock motifs. Refusing to rest on these laurels for long, however, the group would go on to utterly defy easy categorisations over the ensuing decades, with their 1979 second album Vibing Up the Senile Man (Part One) eschewing much of the anthemic mayhem of their debut The Image Has Cracked, in favour of a more experimental free-jazz form. This early anecdotal evidence is vital when attempting to unpack their new eleventh LP Direct Action. Following on from 2015's Opposing Forces, and serving as their first project of new material in almost a decade, this latest collection opts to be their most challenging, impenetrable and unwelcoming yet. Utilising tape loops, isolated guitar passages, minimal vocals and an overall industrial-leaning quality, the fact that the group so many decades ago had their first rehearsals at Throbbing Gristle's Industrial Records studio seems like no great revelation in retrospect. Unconcerned with listener expectation or radioplay, Direct Action demands animated response yet refuses to offer any helping hand down its path of caustic, alien sonics.