“Thought-provoking monologues and confrontational lyrics bring you on a cold, doom-laden journey of perpetual war, psychological mind control and disillusionment.”
Only 500 copies pressed on Black Vinyl. A big thank you to all Iron Man Records Patrons who helped make this possible. Cover Art by Mark “skinny” Orton
“CVLT Nation’s Top 6 Crust Albums: Police Bastard are pretty infamous at this stage, so no need for any introductions with band member links to Doom, Sore Throat, Cain, Rainbow Grave, Filthkick, Sensa Yuma etc. Their album ‘Confined’ sticks to their cynical view of the world mixed with innovative guitar textures and driving industrial intensity. Thought-provoking monologues and confrontational lyrics bring you on a cold, doom-laden journey of perpetual war, psychological mind control, disillusionment and omnipresent bullshit. For a band that has been knocking about on and off for twenty years, they could be forgiven for reverting to the formulaic. However, they rethink and deliver a furious maelstrom of complex dark hardcore, best served cold.” – CVLT Nation
“The album starts with “The Curse Of The Cross”, an anti-theistic slice of brutality, which leaves the listener in no doubt that Police Bastard mean business. You even get a quote from Richard Dawkins about teaching the bible as fiction. Musically they give us huge chugging riffs on “Brought To Our Knees”, which tackles the blandness of multi-national companies infecting the high street, set against the backdrop of the widening gap between rich and poor. For those that like their anthems loud and stompy, “Sick Sick System” will no doubt win a seal of approval with its knock about Punk mayhem and catchy refrain, ‘sick sick system, same old bullshit’. Elsewhere on the album, we get subjects as diverse as being captivated by virtual reality (Words Confined) and environmental disaster from the hand of mankind (Cries From The Earth). Album closer “Fortress” sees organised religion attacked once more, and poses the question, how long before it crumbles…..” – Zak, Ryans Gig Guide
“….From Mark Orton‘s cover art through the final song, “Fortress,” Police Bastard have presented an album that uses hardcore’s battering ram approach to push through a series of songs that depict how humanity has destroyed the Earth. Lines such as “We’re sealing our fate” hammer home the idea that mankind has taken the world to the edge of existence, and we’ll all soon perish, should we not change our ways. Thankfully, Confined manages to never lapse into Earth Crisis-like preaching, choosing instead to quote the likes of John Gray‘s Straw Dogs: “Long after the traces of the human animal have disappeared, many of the species it is bent on destroying will still be around, along with others that have yet to spring up. The Earth will forget mankind. The play of life will go on.” While the music is basic hardcore which occasionally aims for bigger sonic targets, the lyrics and presentation are what make Police Bastard worth checking out……” – Rock Star Journalist, Rock Star Journalist
“Routinely referred to as a Crust Punk band, Police Bastard’s LP is, as you might expect, a delightfully abrasive affair. There are elements of old school hardcore punk, doom and thrash metal, and the occasional flourish reminiscent of their Birmingham hometown heroes, Black Sabbath. The recipe is intense, infectious and utterly brutal.
That’s not to say that there is no subtlety. Sound samples, quotes and changes in pace ensure that there is dynamism and variation enough to thrill and entertain, as well as inform. Of course the record won’t appeal to everyone. Some are likely to be downright offended. Well tough. Police Bastard probably don’t care, and in this age of riots, financial crises, political brinkmanship and fundamental religious fervour, their music and radical philosophical stance have never seemed more relevant.
Put it on. Turn it up. Tear it down.” – Skin Back Alley
The band have been influenced by many different sounds ranging from the likes of Discharge and Chaos UK to Amebix, Rudimentary Peni, Celtic Frost, Black Sabbath, The Cardiacs and Killing Joke. The band emerged from the ashes of some of Britain’s well known hardcore thrash bands: Doom, Cain, Sore Throat, Filthkick, English Dogs, Sensa Yuma and Contempt. Police Bastard started in 1994 and the new album is possibly the best record the band have made so far.
Ten songs recorded and released through Iron Man Records, Birmingham.
Tracklisting:
The Curse Of The Cross, Brought To Our Knees, Sick Sick System, Humanimal, Cries From The Earth, Binary Thinker, Words Confined, Bite The Hand, We Are The Dead, Fortress.
All Lyrics: Pid and John
All Music: Police Bastard
Layout: John Doom
The album was Recorded, Mixed, Produced and Mastered by Simon Reeves at Framework Recording Studios.
Label: Iron Man Records
Catalog#: IMB6036
Format: VINYL
Country: England
Released: 2017
Genre: Rock
Style: Punk
Police Bastard – Confined distributed by Cargo Records 2021
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