Album Details

• Artist: Year Of The Dragon
• Album: Blunt Force Karma
• Label: The IBCT
• Year of Release: 2010
• ME Rating:
• Reviewed by: archelon on 2010-03-23

The first full-length album from Year of the Dragon - formed from the ashes of ska-punk legends Fishbone by Dirty Walt and Spacey T, joined by Rodcore. Name-dropping aside however, the new record is ostensibly a concept album about the methods and practices of indie, or as Rodcore puts it, "an allegorical indictment of the way the film and music industries are at a creative standstill, recycling ideas and not creating anything really new and exciting".

Unlike most concept albums however, the theme is not undetectable to the listener. In fact, it couldn't be more clearly thrashed into your skull throughout the twelve track cacophony of racket that is 'Blunt Force Karma'. It assaults your senses from the very front line and by the time I finish 'Destroy Your Fear' (track four) I'll confess to being exhausted. So much to concentrate on - not just the message but also the music itself. 25 long years of pure punk experience is given full force.

But continuing on to 'No Tomorrow' and 'High Times', and the title track, I'm left with exhilaration. This album is by no means an easy ride, musically or philosophically, but it certainly proves Dirty Walt's point of "black guys rocking and showing the world we can do more than rap and sing R&B tunes". It's funky, it's punky and it punches like a freight train - one of the best metal albums I've heard in ages.

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