Welsh firebrands Scarlet Rebels are only too happy to launch barbed lyrical attacks on the authors of austerity and the revellers of sleaze and corruption. This, then, is a band with a social conscience and sense of justice, something too lacking in bands too afraid to take a shot at such wide-open goals.
Scarlet Rebels’ musical template is the sound of melodic classic rock. The boogie is strong in album opener I’m Alive and their ethics and integrity are firmly in place on These Days, an anthem of optimism and hope.
Alas, there are moments of formulaic construction: Leave A Light On seems to be specifically designed for lighters-aloft action, while Take It is too by-numbers to be convincing.
All is not lost. The title track nails its political colours to the mast, while the air-punching I Can Sleep Now shows that there’s fun to be had in dissent.
