RICHARD YOUNGS
BARBED WIRE EXPLOSION IN THE KINGDOM OF ATLANTIS
Limited LP. Beyond 'Outsider,' beyond 'auteur' there is one figure who continues to revel in curveballs and sideways steps, and that figure is Glasgow based artist Richard Youngs. On 'Barbed Wire Explosion In The Kingdom Of Atlantis' Richard Youngs crafts a truly out-there and personal version of 80s D-Beat, recreating on his own the power of a punk band at the peak of its creative powers. Over pounding tin-can d-beats, the cheapest sounding power-chord guitar playing possible Youngs' voice is surviving the onslaught: recognisable from his previous vocal work but entirely perverted by a sonic form truly at wonderful odds with his lilting, droning tone. Easily more extreme in its execution than any number of 'classic' d-beat albums, this record aims for something, completely misses it and ends up in a place that is truly unique and needs to be heard. You can't ask more from an artist.
