Civic ‘Chrome Dipped’
On Chrome Dipped, the Melbourne-born band left no doubt about seeking a fresh direction for their third LP, openly declaring they were finished with the ’70s punk sound that had first put them on the map. Where 2023’s Taken By Force dabbled in brute dynamism, Chrome Dipped takes a sleeker curve – more leather glove than clenched fist.
Opening cut The Fool surges forward like a Motörhead-drenched sermon, packing a wiry punch that sets the tone for the album’s taut thirty- seven minute runtime. The title track and first single follows. This was the first taste of the new sound for the band and while it divided some fans, there was an overall positive response.
The Hogg is a stomping slab of chrome-laced riffage that feels both vintage and eerily contemporary, recalling the industrial shimmer of The Stooges’ Raw Power sessions, but with the precision of modern Melbourne grit.
Elsewhere, Gulls Way and Amissus allow for brief detours into moodier, almost noir terrain. But CIVIC don’t loiter long. While on Starting All The Dogs Off vocalist Jim McCullough semi-narrates the lyrics giving off Nick Cave vocal delivery vibes.
Poison picks up the pace again and showcases McCullough’s talent for barked nihilism that still somehow manages to sound anthemic. There’s humour too, the curiously titled Fragrant Rice is a ragged boogie with a chorus that sticks like spilled beer on linoleum. Kingdom Come builds like a pressure cooker, before Swing Of The Noose drops the curtain with a feral yowl, leaving the listener sweaty, satisfied, and ready to go again.
Chrome Dipped doesn’t reinvent the wheel, it sandblasts it, coats it in oil, and spins it through the underbelly of rock ’n’ roll’s least forgiving alleyways.
Album Review By Darren Bevington
