Under Attack

The Alarm | Format: Audio CD

Product Details

• Audio CD (June 13, 2006)
• Original Release Date: 2006
• Number of Discs: 1
• Label: Eleven Thirty
• ASIN: B000F2CAGA
• Also Available in: Audio CD  |  MP3 Download
• Average Customer Review: 4.9 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (9 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #301,249 in Music (See Top 100 in Music)

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com

Only lead singer/songwriter Mike Peters remains from the original lineup of this north Wales band, which helped to usher in an early MTV generation with its rock anthem "The Stand." But Peters still has stories to tell, from both the 2005 bombings of a London subway and his personal battle with leukemia. Sounding more like a supercharged 21st century pop band than any U2 wannabe, this version of the Alarm shouldn't fear the retread labels that often attach themselves to revamped '80s bands. Peters jettisoned his solo songwriting rituals to gain inspiration from a full-band setting, and the outcome is initiated both by the contagious "Superchannel," and "Without a Fight," where Peters sings of prevailing against his disease. The acoustic flashes of "This is Life" balance the record against weighty rockers like "Zero" and "Be Still," the Clash-inspired "Cease and Desist," and "My Town," which has Peters recalling the terrorist attack on his city. And when he sings, "The only thing that comes for free/Is the air we need to breathe," it serves as both a distressing remembrance of a horrifying event and perhaps the most potent song on a powerful comeback album. --Scott Holter

Product Description

Limited edition with bonus 13 track (PAL) DVD. Under Attack was co-produced with Martin Wilding (Doves) & George Williams (Babyshambles) and proves that following on from their 'Poppyfields' hit that they can sound as fresh and dynamic as a group 20 years their junior; from the raucous punk of 'Cease and Desist' to the spiky syncopation of 'Raindown' - there are echoes here of the Clash and the Cult, tempered by the expansive, passionate rock sound and includes the single 'Superchannel'. EMI. 2006. *Please note that you need an ALL Code DVD player to view. EMI. 2006. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

7 of 8 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Supercharged!, June 22, 2006

By 

Steve A. Fulton (Redondo Beach, CA United States) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Under Attack (Audio CD)

From the unforgettable opening riffs of "Superchannel" all the way through the final acoustic note of "This Is The Way We Are" this 21st Century version The Alarm prove they are one of the most underrated bands in the world. Everything the band won and lost between the years of 1981-1986 is encapsulated on this one fantastic album, but it doesn't stop there. The band has never rocked like they do on "Few And Far Between", or soared like they do on "Be Still". In fact, far from matching previous efforts, this album greatly surpasses them. However, it doesn't stop there. Songs like "Superchannel" and "Zero" show that the band can sound current, while still retaining all the qualities that fans loved about them in the first place. This is a supercharged new album from a revitalized band that should have "Never Left" in the first place.

6 of 7 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Wow!!!! Fantatstic return of form, June 22, 2006

By 

T. Lewis (FL) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Under Attack (Audio CD)

For a while I have been reading the oversea reviews on Under Attack. It was supposed to be a return to their early rocking pseudo punk form. I found this hard to believe.

Not anymore.

Hard hitting and with a swagger, this version of the Alarm could likely play the socks off the original line up. Mike Peter's voice sounds really fit as well.

I was dissapointed with their last album which was billed as a return to form. This is actually the real return of The Alarm.

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Wake Up, It's the Alarm!, December 23, 2008

By 

Gord Wilson "alivingdog.com" (Bellingham, WA USA) - See all my reviews
(TOP 1000 REVIEWER)    (VINE VOICE)   

This review is from: Under Attack (Audio CD)

When I first heard a sample from this 2006 album in a store, I couldn't believe how the Alarm still rocked. I went crazy with joy in the store, and the clerk ordered it for me. It took me back to university days when we'd play hackey sack to the driving beat of the infinitely long "Howling Wind," the climactic finale to the Alarm's anthemic I.R.S. album, Declaration. Yes I miss Mike's mates, Dave and Eddie and Twist, but Under Attack serves notice that Mike Peters still rocks.

This CD was previously available only as a UK import, but this is a US version distributed by Eleven Thirty Records. It's a baker's dozen of songs, but there's also a bonus DVD with videos of all thirteen songs. The UK DVD was released in PAL format, but the US DVD played fine in my Toshiba player. The opening song, "Superchannel" was number one in the UK, but there's also an extra feature of a different video, which was likely the UK version. There's also an "on location" feature on making the videos, with Mike Peters providing commentary. All thirteen were shot in a hectic two weeks, which may be a Guiness record. On top of all that there's a booklet with the lyrics to all the songs.

Arguably, the set lacks something of the finesse and chemistry of the old Alarm. But think of this as an entirely new thing, the Alarm recast as garage band, stripped to its roots, Mike Peters at the top of his form, at home in the influences he loves. There are crazy, acid nods to the best of his solo album, Rise, to songs like "Transcendental", "My Calling", and "You Are to Me". But also bits recalling the Clash. The video for "Without a Fight" has a punk look and the "A" for "Alarm" on the drum suggests the graffito "A" for "Anarchy". Other vids recreate the black and white stage of the Ed Sullivan Show, the US stepping stone for the Beatles and the Brit musical invasion.

Peters is far more vulnerable than most rockers, and his lyrics more self-disclosing. He brings passion, not posturing to the footlights, as if rock was really about something. "My Town", filmed in his native Wales, recalls the Alarm's first single, "Pavillion Steps", which mourned the destruction of a local landmark. Mike's songs don't fit prefab pop: they don't always rhyme, the lines don't neatly fit; they seem wrung out of him on the spot, and they catch you off guard, as in "My Town": "I can't take back the bullets fired in the name of God". The final song, "This is the Way We Are", is even more ambitious. It begins as a ballad, reminiscent of "The Spirit of '76", and ends as the album's hardest rocker. But the footage was shot first, and Peters wove the visual kaleidoscope into an accompanying musical montage.

Besides "Superchannel," there are some major rockers on this album, which scream "radio". "This is Life (Get Used to It)" and "Cease and Desist" seem made for alt rock stations like Seattle's The End. In many of these videos, Peters reminds you of no one so much as Kurt Cobain. And after so many downer songs on the radio, aren't we ready for Peters to remind us in "Zero" that "Everybody is something to someone somewhere"?

So, you may be saying, why haven't I heard of this rocking Welsh band? Because corporate radio wouldn't know classic rock if it bit them in the tailpipe. As far as they're concerned, it ended with Credence Clearwater Revival. But if you're tired of the same old cookie cutter pop, here's your wake up call, courtesy of the Alarm.