CROWN COURT: Heavy Manners
Release year: 2023
Label: Randale Records
When did Crown Court become this big? I remember when their first album Capital Offence came out in 2016: it was well received, but not to any great amount of hoopla. The same for the singles they released between the debut and this album. Well received, not a massive hype. But then Heavy Manners comes out, and the vinyl edition sells out faster than you can put on your fake cockney accent and say “oi!” in an entirely inappropriate context.
Sure, UK newspaper The Guardian did a story about them (here), and the band presented themselves very favourably in it. But it can’t be just that. I guess I’m just out of touch, as the buzz around the band caught me a bit off guard.
But let’s check out if the most hyped oi! album of the year lives up to the buzz.
In my not-so-humble opinion, the earlier material was fine, but not particularly strong or memorable. In fact, though I own most of what the band’s put out, I can’t name a single song or remember a single chorus. In that sense, Heavy Manners is decidedly a step forward.
Because this time around, Crown Court have crafted a distinct sound of their own, one that sticks with ya. Taking the blueprint of classic British oi! and classic street rock & roll, adding a whole lot of aggression, gravel and rough edges to it, what comes out is something that’s true to tradition but still very much of this day. It reminds me a bit of B Squadron in some ways: like them, Crown Court’s sound is harder, more abrasive and more aggressive than typical oi, but without straying into metal or hardcore territory.
Vocalist Trevor Taylor plays a significant role in the sound. Hoarse and filled to the brim with anger, he not so much sings as shouts out his snarling tirades of working class londoner life. Replete with anger and aggressive energy, his style has truly grown to what might become iconic within oi! if the band keep it up.
But of course it’s not just the vocals. Behind Taylor, the band perform with energy and confrontational power. The sound is full and in-your-face, powerfully amplifying the no-nonsense riffing, which takes its cues equally from the oi! canon and street hard rock a’la Rose Tattoo (or why not Slade at their hardest). But where the latter would have a bit of groove in their beat, Crown Court assault with a brickwall sensibility of force, not nuance.
And hey, whaddayaknow! It works. Heavy Manners truly is a major step forward for the band on all fronts. It sounds more vital and more inspired than their entire previous discography, packs a lot more punch, and has a much more distinctive sound. A track like Pavement Duties with its killer riffing truly is an oi! anthem for a new generation of bands, whilst Kids Of The 20’s takes classic rock & roll riffing coupling it with high-speed bootboy rock to great effect. This isn’t so much about anthemic choruses and catchy shoutalongs as it is about knuckleheaded force – although I can imagine crowds wherever shouting along to video track Striped Up, Sent Down’s chorus asking if you’re from North London.
Does Heavy Manners live up to the hype? Honestly, how the fuck would I know. Does anything ever? On one hand, Heavy Manners doesn’t revolutionize the genre. It’s still very much oi! and bootboy ruck & roll. And on the other hand, it very clearly is not only one of the best oi! albums in the last couple of years, but with its sheer aggression and attitude points a new direction for oi! to take. I wouldn’t be at all surprised to shortly start seeing bands taking their cues from Heavy Manners’ sound pop up.
Hype and buzz be damned. The bottom line is that Heavy Manners is a very strong album. In that sense, Crown Court have proven themselves worthy of the attention – and perhaps even the mantle of resurrectors of UK oi! some have tried to place on them.
Only Death Is Real 