Album Review: 999 - "Bish Bash Bosh"

 

999 are very much stalwarts of the punk scene having been there right back in the days of the Roxy and the Vortex (indeed, frontman Nick Cash actually started out in the early '70s with Ian Dury in pub rockers Kilburn & The High Roads). Bish Bash Bosh is their first album since Death In Soho way back in 2008 and the edgy R&B on opener Don't Wanna Know is a promising start here recalling the group's biggest hit Homicide.

To be honest, Bish Bash Bosh is very much business as usual for 999 from the chugging almost pub rock indebted likes of Psycho Man and Crazy Tuesday World to the faster punky likes of Shoot, The Pit And The Pentagon and the excellently named My Dad Trashed My Submarine. There's the odd deviation from the template such as on the Stonesy strut of Monkey, the sinister spaced-out I Hate It All and Doctor Nick which seems to be a rewrite of the Doctor Who theme of all things (!) but by and large this is the sound of a band playing it safe and playing to their strengths. Which at this stage of their career, you can understand really.

Although it's not quite up to the standard of their first three albums, Bish Bash Bosh is a solid reminder that 999 are still out there and have a bit of fire left in their arsenal. Should you be interested in giving it a listen, the 999 Bandcamp page will see you right. 

NITE SONGS RATING: 🌔🌔🌔🌔🌔🌔🌔🌑🌑🌑 (7/10)

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