Thirty years later, Boston Massachusetts’ Mission of Burma ejects their fourth proper studio LP into the bitter autumn. It’s hard to conceive of a band so influential, so well established as having created the relatively limited catalog they have (also a band given their own day by the city of Boston, October 4th) but The Sound, The Speed, The Light marks just their third effort this post reformation decade and something blisteringly on par with their neophyte work.
Incubation combined with middle age have done little to dull the quartet’s jagged, unorthodox sound (a point of academic discussion: is this band’s reformation the greatest byproduct of a reunion tour – ever?). As their original fan base pushes into their mid to late fifties, they still find themselves able to muddle about in a mix of impossibly thick, crashing guitar (“Possession” and particularly, “After The Rain”) blaze through a three minute, party anthem (“1, 2, 3, Party!!”) or inspiring drill sergeants everywhere with throbbing ‘marching up and down the square’ rock (“Feed”). The band seems less prone to sing-song, concert feel-goodness (with the possible exception of the banging apocalyptic “Good Cheer”) yet in control of their bobble-headed whimsy. As has always been the case, songs on The Sound, The Speed, The Light tell the story: it’s as though little to no time has passed since Signals, Calls and Marches defined post-punk.
The edge remains. As “So Fuck It” crumbles into a mess, pulsing into the living room from the stereo speakers with it’s vague yet thoughtfully misanthropic banner in hand, the wonder isn’t about Mission Of Burma’s lasting influence – it’s whether or not they’re still building on that legacy. |