“catchy dose of anthemic, ’80s-style street punk” – BrooklynVegan
“another shout-along effort of old-school impactful punk…” – Vanyaland
“There’s a confidence and unrelenting swagger to this album that incorporates all the most infectious elements of the punk eras the band love so much.” – Punktuation Magazine
United by a love of classic punk, ska and oi, UK based Grade 2 are bringing the raw power of old school punk to a new generation. Today the band unveils their third studio album, ‘Grade 2’ via Hellcat Records under the guidance of Tim Armstrong (Rancid). Appropriately self-titled, it’s their most representative work yet melding the uncompromising ethos of punk with the howl of contemporary injustice, personal identity and frustrations of Gen-Z youth.
Authentically told by three lads with punk coursing through their veins, ‘Grade 2’ make blistering punk music laced with passion, angst, humor and despair. Front man Sid Ryan explains, “Like everyone else, 2020 left us proper fucked off.” He continues, “Yet we were able to channel every ounce of that despair into every second of this record.”
From the complex rhythms and brutal two-note guitar of opening track “Judgement Day”, the record grabs by the scruff of the neck and never lets up. With a commitment to the cause, lead single “Doing Time” is a thunderous hardcore punk track screaming: “Spoon feed me corporate lies; I left that place with a noose to my neck.” Intertwined are upbeat bangers (“Under the Streetlight”, “Celine”), classic pop-punk (“Don’t Stand Alone”, “Fast Pace”), and savage old-school grit (“Parasite”, “Gaslight”). The result is a bone-crunching 35-minutes that agitates, intoxicates and liberates in equal measure.
‘Grade 2’ Tracklisting
1. Judgement Day
2. Fast Pace
4. Doesn’t Matter Much Now
6. Brassic
7. Gaslight
8. Don’t Stand Alone
9. Streetrat Skallywag
10. Parasite
11. It’s A Mad World, Baby
12. Doing Time
13. Celine
14. See You Around
15. Bottom Shelf
Grade 2 is Sid Ryan (vocals, bass), Jacob Hull (drums) and Jack Chatfield (guitar, vocals)
