Wire: forever!

 Yes, Wire. It warms my heart to think that nearly 35 years on from the legendary "Pink Flag" this band is still capable of releasing fantastic music. Make no mistake, "Red Barked Tree" may not sound as original or groundbreaking as their first record - and no, it's not up there with "Chairs Missing" or "154" either - but it's still unique, weird, idiosyncratic, all those things that made them so exciting and influential in the first place.

 This album has been very well received in general but I did notice some crappy reviews here and there. Most of them criticize the compressed sound, the glossy production and guitar effects, and some even complain about the overly intellectual lyrics. If we were talking about some new hipster band I would probably agree, but what we have here is a Wire record: more than a specific sound these guys share a vision and a long history in "subverting genres" and "confounding expectations", as stated on their website. They've been there, done that, and for anyone familiar with their back catalogue there really isn't much on "Red Barked Tree" that feels "suspicious" or strays too far from their artistical ethics.

Now Was

 Without a doubt this is classic Wire, and what makes this new album such a treat is the notion of pleasure that is palpable throughout its 11 songs: Colin Newman, Graham Lewis and Robert Grey seem to be having a great time playing together, something sadly unusual when bands have been around for so long (though it's true they split and reformed various times, and now carry on without founding guitarist Bruce Gilbert). "Red Barked Tree" is varied, exciting, definitely more concise, melodic and accessible than their previous releases, often shying away from their experimental side in favour of straighter dynamics. The wall-of-sound guitar textures are sometimes reminiscent of shoegaze or dream pop, and while there is still a very cerebral element to their songwriting they do let off some steam by rocking out ("Smash") or locking into simple, danceable pop grooves on tracks like "Bad Worn Thing". Even the quieter and more downbeat songs feature some pretty, elegiac acoustic guitars.

Bad Worn Thing

 Wire notoriously always avoided making another "Pink Flag" and made a point in evolving constantly, but on this release you can sense they are not afraid to make music that revisits their early output while simultaneously updating their sound. The result is a very good record that effortlessly balances their punk roots with their more ethereal and arty ambitions. When a band ages so well and offers such a clever perspective on the world more than three decades into their career, one can only hope they will keep recording and touring. Let's see if we feel the same about Gang Of Four later this month...