First Listen: Gang of Four Return With New Album ‘Content’

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Photos: Gang Of Fourview gallery Once upon a time there was a record store on Lincoln Ave. called Wax Trax. Every Saturday in the late 70’s and early 80’s, I would take the leftovers from my meager wages and the late Jim Nash, the owner and man behind the counter would point me in the direction […]

Gang of Four

Once upon a time there was a record store on Lincoln Ave. called Wax Trax. Every Saturday in the late 70’s and early 80’s, I would take the leftovers from my meager wages and the late Jim Nash, the owner and man behind the counter would point me in the direction of the new import 45’s that I needed to buy. On one of those shopping adventures, I left the store with Damaged Goods. Returning the purchase never crossed my mind. It was a song by a band from Leeds called [lastfm]Gang of Four[/lastfm]. Unlike anything I’d ever heard. [youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=i_Ea4loI7xQ&fs=1&hl=en_US]It took punk and shot it with a dose of minimal funk. Plus it had a political message as sharp as the guitar that cut through the rhythms. And you could dance to it. The band influenced many and even had a hit, “I Love A Man In A Uniform” became a dance floor staple in the 80’s. Jon King and Andy Gil reunited in the 90’s for while and in recent years they returned to play some shows at Metro and release an album with new versions of old songs. I recite all this history because I’m a more than a little excited about the first new Gang of Four music in 16 years. The album called Content is due to arrive in February and so is the band, returning to Metro on 2/11. Below is a preview of the album, the song “Never Pay For The Farm”. As they say, More on the way![Download “Never Pay For The Farm”]



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