Fucked Up- Year of the Pig (Single)

To put it bluntly this record is completely ridiculous. Once again the band lives up to their name, releasing this 12” single that can accurately be described as a ‘hardcore epic’, If I was lazier I might call it a punk ‘Bohemian Rhapsody’ but Queen have absolutely no place on this blog.

Running at 18 minutes, it takes the length of three or four ordinary punk songs to even kick in. Featuring snarling, forceful vocals about the chosen extended metaphor of pigs, ‘Suffer the Pig that can’t change its fate’, the track never bores, nor does it let up. This is reportedly the first in a series of releases on each of the signs of the Chinese zodiac and as if that wasn’t absurd enough, this is still a hardcore track, which, already warped enough by Fucked Ups extensive, unconventional and bold arrangements, features wailing female vocals and a massive sounding, atmospheric organ.

It really should not work this well, but somehow they pull it off. Unafraid to go beyond the two minute mark, Fucked Up also excel when they attempt more straightforward, conventional, hardcore punk, as B Side ‘The Black Hats’ shows. Fucked Ups real strength lies, however, in their willingness to experiment. Whilst many bands would be happy to peddle samey hardcore that stagnated before I was even born, Fucked Up stay exciting. Never short of exhilarating, this release cements Fucked Ups place as one of the (if not the) leading bands in modern hardcore.

8.5/10