Always be wary of Battle Of The Bands winners. Events of that type always attract corporate accountant folk called Nigel from Tunbridge Wells. It appears that Sancho Panzer (winners of a Rock Sound sponsored event of this kind back in 2007) are an exception to the rule, however, presenting us with the kind of euphoric fist pumping post-hardcore (well, it’s more like pop-punk, really) that the likes of Million Dead or At the Drive-In typified in the early noughties. Very occasionally, they sound vaguely like The Dropkick Murphys or an early Offspring. It’s not really my bag, but they’re obviously very talented at what they do and I imagine that fans of the aforementioned genres will not be disappointed.
Not wishing to come across as a curmudgeonly old sourpuss though, I will willingly admit that there are moments here that even I thoroughly enjoyed. ‘Shaolin Punk‘, for instance, begins with a riff that has been clearly lifted from The Vapors‘ 1980 UK hit single ‘Turning Japanese‘, but then explodes into just under two minutes of shouty, devil-may-care attitude. It’s a lot of fun, frontman Adam Tildesley’s guitar playing here swilling from the same jar as Captain Sensible on The Damned‘s 1979 classic ‘Smash It Up‘.
One thing that you certainly can’t fault on Your Own Accord is the admirable breadth of subject matter on offer; ‘High Speed‘ is an attack on politicians and the MP expenses scandal, ‘It Can Only Be So Good‘ an old school punk song that is, in essence, a commentary upon the hysterical screech of headlines on the front page of The Daily Mail. All things considered, I ought to love this band. Maybe I would, if I was nineteen again, but it’s all a bit “one tempo” for my liking: a constant in-yer-face rush of beer swilling all night revellers, pogoing rampantly, the stale stench of sweaty underarms an unwelcome assailant on your severely vanquished nostrils. Sancho Panzer’s fans probably wouldn’t have it any other way. Me personally, these days I’d rather have an early night with a black coffee and the Better Call Saul boxset.
Yet there’s still time, it seems, for them to win me over. Penultimate track ‘Make The Most Of It‘ is a triumphant cross-breeding of The Replacements and Camper Van Beethoven, while finale ‘Punching Above Your Weight‘ is like a punkier but slightly less angry Reuben and sizzles with the buzz and crackle of Kiwi rockers The D4.
For all that I want to embrace Your Own Accord though, I just don’t feel like I’m wholly able to. I need the scenery to change once in a while, and not just once we’re nearing the end of the tunnel. A listenable album with the odd flash of brilliance here and there, though if I’m honest, deep down, I know it’s better than I think it is, if that makes any sense at all!
