It’s unapologetic and cements their status as one of the most important bands in the country.
Regardless of whether this album changes any stubborn minds on Idles as a band, it is a phenomenal achievement. They have matched their last album, Joy as an Act of Resistance, in terms of quality. It is a release that reaffirms that they are deserving of their position as one of a small handful of current rock groups that sit in the public’s consciousness.
It may be easy to write off initially as preachy or reductive but the sharp, self-aware wit and incisive simplicity in the band’s best lyrics make it clear its members are no intellectual slouches.
Emotionally draining, masculine in a forward-looking sense, fragmented but bone-shakingly whole.
Ultra Mono is Idles' most sonically and thematically focused album so far, occasionally to a slight fault.
For all of the ugly rage and fury at modern life on display here, it is also a celebration of the beauty that can happen when people come together in love and unity to face the turmoil and traumas of an increasingly angry, shouty, scary world, and facing it armed only with a hug.
It's a one-tone listen. But that shout-in-your-face directness is exactly what makes Ultra Mono so powerful. This is rock music that compels you to pay attention.
Bristol punks IDLES deliver a state of the world address in sharp, stark, brilliant fashion with Ultra Mono.
Ultra Mono scours like bleach, its fury a purifier.
On 'Ultra Mono' IDLES push the boundaries of what has been expected from them with rightly-earned brazen confidence that has resulted in their best work to date. This is a band who no longer need to prove themselves.
At root ... Ultra Mono's strengths are inseparable from its flaws. In fact, some of the crudest lyrics, like Reigns or the condescending Brexitland caricature Model Village, are framed by the most irresistible music. IDLES's brute-force catharsis neither requires nor rewards subtlety.
There is plenty to return to here – if you have the stamina. Even if you’re recumbent while listening to Ultra Mono, you’ll still need a bit of a sit down afterwards.
For the most part, Ultra Mono is a search for solutions and applying them.
IDLES know how hard it is out there, now more than ever, but that's all the more reason for raised fists and unceasing resistance. Last time they did it joyfully, and before that, they did it brutally. Now those elements come together, whether for a fight or a moment of gratitude.
Ultra Mono may not be their best work to date, but where that special sparkle of Joy… and Brutalism is missing, there are some fresh ideas and trademark energy ensuring it is a more than solid entry into their catalogue.
At its strongest, Ultra Mono offers a fresh set of urgent rallying cries for anyone interested in furthering workers’ rights, dismantling systemic racism, and knocking out a few Nazi teeth. The record’s missteps mostly come when Talbot finds himself on the defensive, a position that finds him turning out poison-pen responses to critics that probably felt better to sing than they do to hear.
Musically, Ultra Mono is as tight, ballistic, and in your face as IDLES have ever been ... Lyrically, Ultra Mono is louder – and prouder – than the band have ever been.
Their schtick isn’t tired yet, the humour is as enjoyable as it ever was, and the world is still in a grim enough state that every emission from Joe Talbot is welcome. Ultra Mono is not a record to change anybody’s mind about IDLES, nor is it a sign of any dropoff in form.
IDLES are at their best when they know their limits and play to their strengths. Like a hard liquor, they're harsh, bitter and indelibly intoxicating. They will provoke you to join a mosh pit or ram your head into a wall, and they might prompt you to vote Labour in the next election.
Ultra Mono is an enjoyable but ideologically confused record and one in which some of IDLES best material must compensate for some of their worst.
It’s an intoxicating racket, and they remain formidably tight, but Idles’ most powerful statement may be behind them.
Without applying any analysis, there is much to enjoy here; their raucous energy shines just as bright, but underneath the surface Ultra Mono lacks the sparkle that made their first two records truly special.
It’s unsubtle and it’s inconsistent, but Ultra Mono has an awkward frankness to it that isn’t entirely without charm.
Love them or hate them, IDLES has quickly become one of the most essential bands in modern times. The group have an insanely dedicated fan base in the AF Gang and can pretty easily pack one of their raucous and chaotic live shows, but they are most certainly not without their detractors either. Whether that be listeners claiming their lyrics are too direct or ridiculous, their sound isn't versatile, or even other artists like Jason Williamson of Sleaford Mods claiming the group are ... read more
“I'll be your hammer
I'll be your nail
I'll be the house that allows you to fail” - Joe Talbot, 2020
At the best of times, the world is a dark, bleak place that seems to trade compassion and earnestness for cynicism and deceit. Happiness, when one can find it, is something that not many people tend to achieve long term, as sad as it may seem. “The world is a vicious place” is a term i’ve heard all my life, and frankly it's a phrase that scares me half to death. ... read more
Listening to IDLES is the musical equivalent to walking down to the street and getting jumped on by a bunch of burly English men with handlebar mustaches (even on their dicks). They stop kicking you on the ground for what feels like an eternity until the gang leader gives you a 20 dollar bill for the local ice cream parlor. After a final kick to the shins, they leave and you wonder what the fuck happened. You don’t really like the fact that they beat the ever living piss out of you just ... read more
While I was underwhelmed upon my first listen, returning to this I was blown away. The chaos of War, the heaviness of Grounds and the screams for consent on Ne Touche Pas Moi. The band was certainly hitting their stride off the back of their previous record. Also, the production on this album is in-fucking-credible.
Strongest: War
Weakest: Carcinogenic
Personal Fave: Grounds
1 | War 3:07 | 90 |
2 | Grounds 3:08 | 88 |
3 | Mr. Motivator 3:15 | 85 |
4 | Anxiety 2:59 | 77 |
5 | Kill Them With Kindness 3:49 | 78 |
6 | Model Village 3:54 | 86 |
7 | Ne Touche Pas Moi 2:33 | 70 |
8 | Carcinogenic 3:50 | 79 |
9 | Reigns 4:02 | 89 |
10 | The Lover 3:16 | 76 |
11 | A Hymn 5:18 | 80 |
12 | Danke 3:34 | 76 |
#6 | / | God Is In The TV |
#8 | / | Sound Opinions: Greg Kot |
#10 | / | MondoSonoro |
#11 | / | Far Out Magazine |
#11 | / | Sound Opinions: Jim DeRogatis |
#12 | / | MOJO |
#14 | / | Rough Trade |
#15 | / | Les Inrocks |
#16 | / | NBHAP |
#19 | / | Kerrang! |