FULLY CHARGED RETURN!
July 2004
B.N.I. - FORCE MAJEUR
For a band
named after a 1987 sentimental Spielberg movie for kids, Batteries Not
Included (B.N.I.) can sure raise the roof rather ‘unsentimentally’ when
it comes to decibel levels. They proved it with their bilingual debut,
Ilsien Pajjizi, they prove it at each and every one of their gigs, and
here they are with a new album, Force Majeur, ready to prove it again.
Still fundamentally inspired and influenced by the sound of the original
70’s punk movement, BNI’s music has also evolved to take in other
elements, both old and new.
Of these, perhaps the more obvious are the ska elements that BNI have
embraced and applied to some of the tracks here, including the standout
track Civilisation, blurring the boundaries between the punk and
two-tone references to create an even more potent hybrid. On Looking Up
then, BNI dish out an atypical six minute-long punk lashing niftily
laced with a customised Police slant (the band I mean, not the
uniforms!). It’s hard not to think of some of punk’s biggest icons on
songs like By-Product of Today, Inertia or Silence, particularly when so
much attention has been afforded to retain the incisive tenacity of
punk’s glory days. Force Majeur however, is no retro album - in fact,
BNI blanace the scales by slipping in a couple of contemporary punk
nouveau slices that should broaden their appeal to fans on both sides of
the punk spectrum. There is a conspicuously different approach all over
Force Majeur, and I don’t just mean the all-English language factor.
Compared to the debut, the production on Force Majeur is much warmer –
the album more cohesive, while more attention has also been given to
boost the songs with the potential to appeal beyond the band’s
established niche fanbase!
Force Majeur was recorded at Temple Studios and engineered by David
Vella. The new album, which is being released through Reciprocal
Records, was officially launched on Friday, 30 July at Signals Bar in
Tal-Qroqq, with live performances by Batteries Not Included and support
from The I-Skandal.
Recommended weblink:
www.reciprocalrecords.com
