This Heat - Deceit

The world of post-punk in the early 80s was bleak. The genre was forming a militant assault onto the charts through the commercialised sound of new-wave, however, in the midst of all that, This Heat were going against the current to bring back the lost post-punk energy, and channel it into jazz-like experimentation, with splashes of prog-rock, too. Nevertheless, being recorded in what used to be a bloody, chilling meat locker, the record is light-years away from the dreaminess or calming qualities associated with those two genres – Deceit was born in a Thatcher-bred, Cold War-infested world, and it has the angular energy designed to wake you up to the evil, corrupt world around you. “Paper Hats” detonates with a sudden freak-out that whirls with frantic guitars, and collides with machine-gun drums. The exhilarating experience leads to a lengthy outro that maintains tension, as if the elements are ready to pounce at any given moment. This is only the second track, and the album has a cabinet full of moments that are not only extraordinary, but revolutionary. The way the band commands musical car crashes would later be seen in earth-sized rock bands like Godspeed You! Black Emperor, Swans, Sonic Youth, Public Image Ltd, as well as the jazz-leaning side of Radiohead. Calling this album merely “post-punk” is exactly what the album is titled. It is a record that is so outsider and with such a wild imagination, that it still sounds like the future today.