The Violets//'Troubles of Keneat' - Review

The Violets' new single, 'Troubles of Keneat'/'Feast On You' (ARC026), isn't released until Monday. But, luckily for you, The New Thing have managed to grab a copy early. It's lucky for you because now you can plan your Monday afternoon around a visit to your local indie record shop.

The reason we say this is that you have to hear these two songs. 'Troubles of Keneat' is billed as a 'hedonistic Coldwave disco', and certainly lives up to that description with a lilting drum-machine rhythm and some radical pedal effects from guitarist Joe Daniel. Alexis McCloed spits her vocals in classic Siouxsie mode (she doesn't like the comparison, but it's truer on 'Keneat' than normal).

But as good as 'Keneat' is, it's the B-side, 'Feast On You', that makes it worth buying the single (instead of, say, looping the A-side on the band's MySpace). It's a slice of raw post-punk which really could have made a double-A release, and although Siouxsie is less obviously present in Alexis' voice, Poly Styrene of X-Ray Spex looms large, and instrumentally the track sounds a lot like Boys of Brazil (which is definitely a good thing) - an angrier Josef K with Andy Gill playing lead guitar. 'Feast On You' has been knocking about The Violets' song box for a while, but this version captures it perfectly.

The sleeve and design aren't that special, it isn't limited edition, and it doesn't come with free stickers. But you should buy 'Troubles of Keneat' anyway, for two reasons. Firstly, to support The Violets and ensure they make more music in the future. Second, because 'Feast On You' is a top-quality song. Go and see them on Sunday at Dice Club, on Hallowe'en at Catch's Death Party, and/or on the 10th November at the Roundhouse. They're fantastic.