Album Review - Clinic

Clinic – Do It!
[Domino Records; 8/04/2008]

With the aftermath of the UK rock revival that was started by bands beginning with “the” Liverpool’s finest mask bearing rock quarter, Clinic, made their scouser traits very well known, holding two fingers up to the mediocrity that the NME continue to embellish upon.

The band’s fifth opus, Do It!, is the representation of a band getting back to basics (if you could describe their music as that), touching the nerves that made the embryonic stages of their career such an interesting one, with their landmark double-whammy of Internal Wrangler and Walking With Thee.

‘Memories’ is a speedy opener with the trademark disjointed chord progressions and squeamish vocals possessed by front man, Ade Blackburn. ‘Shopping Band’ is a cacophony of noise Clinic extrude with their vintage instruments while the slower haunting sounds of ‘Corpus Christi’ explore avenues where Clinic have achieved success in the past.

Do It! is somewhere in the middle of Clinic’s catalogue. It won’t show up on too many polls for album of the year, but the simple fact is that the World needs a band like Clinic. The band itself seems content on continuing to supply to a hardcore base of listeners, who in return, hold the band in high regard for their efforts. Along with this is the fact that Clinic presents a form of indie rock with a different spin. These two factors alone are ones that a lot of other bands fail to possess.

By Simon K