Inquisition

Revolution: I Think It’s Called Inspiration (A-F)
by Stevo

In late 2000/early 2001, Strike Anywhere released their first EP, Chorus of One, on Red Leader/No Idea and it blew my mind. Six songs of raw, energetic, anthemic, raspy-vocal punk with a political bent. It hit me the same way, in nearly the same place that the final Kid Dynamite LP did less than a year before. I was excited. Kid Dynamite was gone, but Strike Anywhere was just getting started. But there was a problem: The EP was only six songs, and they were at least a few months away from their first tour. Alright, don’t get desperate, a band like that doesn’t just come out of nowhere. There had to be something else out from these guys. I started to pump anyone I could think of for info, and came across a 7″ from Inquisition in a friend’s collection after he’d sworn he’d heard that voice before. Further investigation turned up the Kat Records pressing of this CD which collects their LP and songs from 7″s and a comp track that came at me even harder than the Strike Anywhere EP.

Part of me wants to go into long, drawn-out detail about how I’ve felt a little let down by Strike Anywhere’s LPs after that crucial EP. That so many of the songs they’ve recorded since then rest pretty firmly on the monkey beat, and it drives me nuts. If your drummer is going to do one thing nearly every song, you might as well get a machine and split the savings. Oh, and the Oi! Oi! Oi! thing was pretty cool the first time, but now just kind of seems like pandering. But I digress.

This review is about this A-F Records re-issue of Inquisition’s amazing yet sadly only 14-song tombstone. If you like Strike Anywhere, this is a safe bet, and I’m most likely preaching to the choir. If you don’t know who the fuck they are or who Inquisition was, imagine pre-metallic hardcore as you wanted it to progress after the Gorilla Biscuits LP came out. Hard-hitting, but positive. Anthemic, but with bite. Modern, but unafraid to harken back to the golden age without sounding pretentious or coming of like riff plagiarists. In short, able to blaze new trails while following the natural progression of music you already love. I’d love to tell you all about this reissue and how it is “sprawling with original artwork, lyrics, and notes by former member (Thomas) Barnett,” but A-F went ahead and made sure I couldn’t by sending out promos in small cardboard sleeves with no booklet at all. Awesome. The record was also remastered, but playing the original and this side by side, I don’t really see too much of a difference. One thing immediately different and disappointing about this new version is that it’s missing the very crucial “Hungry Like The Wolf” Duran Duran cover the original has as a secret track. I don’t know if they’re embarrassed by it now or if A-F didn’t want to deal with the legal repercussions. Maybe that’s covered in the sweet “sprawling” booklet?

In closing I’d feel real bad to end this without mentioning that the other members of Inquisition, Rob and Russ, went on to form Ann Beretta, and Mark is in River City High. Both bands are worth looking into.
(www.a-frecords.com)