Recorded in a 19-hour haze by a young band that had barely dipped a toe in the waters of the music world, ‘Right To Remain Silent’ proudly adorns MORAL DILEMMA‘s proverbial sleeve as a testament to the quality that can be achieved within limited circumstances. Originally released in 2007, the band’s debut album has picked up a re-release this year having been physically unavailable for the past few years.
‘Right To Remain Silent’ is, expectedly, a raw record. This re-release comes without a touch-up so the grainy, unpolished approach of 2007 remains here. Full of relentless guitars, crushing drums and venom-spitting vocals, this is an old-school punk record through and through. It clocks in at 23 minutes meaning that all fat has been trimmed, and that an unrelenting pace is on the agenda. The lyrical focus on politics – basically a massive one finger salute to the authorities – is educated and impacting.
The album’s title track still stands out as the band’s best song, an incriminating stab at the police in the wake of the Jean Charles De Menezes shooting in Stockwell. It’s been a live set closer since this album came into existence and is still relevant nearly five years on. ‘The Bastard Sons’ is the band’s only real foray outside of the breakneck blueprint, taking a blues-tinted approach.
Retrospectively, in many ways ‘Right To Remain Silent’ isn’t quite as good as ‘Agree To Disagree’, the record that succeeded it, but it’s this earlier release that sets up the band and never fails to impress. Moral Dilemma may have grown as songwriters but this album captures the essence of the band perfectly.
ALEX HAMBLETON