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A punk attitude combined with Dylan-esque storytelling, Peace is Levellers’ first album of new music in almost a decade and it’s fair to say the Brighton-based folk-rockers sound as good as ever.

The aspirational album title denotes the band’s desire to find peace in a world that appears to be crumbling around them amidst both global and personal turmoil. While mainly focusing their energy on a collection of current affairs, whether it’s the environment, extreme political manifestos or cultural self-destruction as a result of social media, there are also breath-taking tales of real-life events woven throughout Peace.

One of the standout features of the album is the use of unconventional sounds and processed electric guitar tones infused within a more traditional folk sound of acoustic guitar and fiddle, with ‘Generation Fear’ offering fans a taste of the full spectrum of signature Levellers’ sounds. The constant fluctuations of both vocal and instrumental sounds mean Peace has a new flavour to every track, keeping things interesting without the upbeat tempo having to drop.

There is also a strong punk vibe throughout Peace, something which goes hand-in-hand with the political nature of folk music from a cultural perspective but perhaps seems a less obvious combination musically. The chugging bass and rhythm guitar lines in ‘Four Boys Lost’ underpin a more graceful acoustic guitar and fiddle top-line to create an easy-listening tune delicately poised alongside a fierce punk backdrop.

Peace shows Levellers clear ability to update aspects of their sound and proves their talent in moving with the times to produce stunning records thirty years after their debut release.

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Mind Noise Network

8/10