Object 47

Wire - Circumspect
Wire - Perspex Icon
Wire are back in action with Object 47, the 47th release of their thirty year career. That's right, 30 years. After several breakups and reunions, they reconvened in 1999 and began putting out records. They were loud and raging, almost metallic with grinding riffs. The sound was relentless and dense, and was quite different from the Wire of old. I liked it OK, but it is not easy listening. After some bitter fighting Bruce Gilbert left the band in 2004. The trio's latest offering is something of a return to the sort of music they played in the late '70s and into the '80s. There are catchy riffs and witty wordplay, spiky guitars, keyboard atmosphere, and a bit of electronics. A few of the grinding riffs remain, but they don't dominate the proceedings. It actually reminds me a lot of 2007's Art Pop by Colin Newman's other band Githead. I was a big fan of that record, and it is interesting to hear it's influence on Wire. If you're a fan of the classic Wire sound of old I think you will find this to be an interesting update of that sound - a good mix of the old, tricked out for the 21st century.