- Artist: Various Artists
- Release Date: February 04, 2003
- Type: Collection (various artists)
- Genre: Rock
Review
Mayday is an imprint under the auspices of Montreal's Union Label Group. Dedicated to Oi! and what it calls "streetpunk," the label's introductory compilation is chock-full of jackbooted jams that hit with the force of a baseball bat to the noggin (or a shattered bottle to the cheek in a few particularly bad-tempered cases). Knucklehead, the Class Assassins, Cleats, and the Generatorz all turn in multiple performances typified by lead vocals that are snide and swaggering, acerbic or angry; shoutable choruses that get the lads riled up; hammering, power chord verses; and stirring lead guitar salvos. It's possible to say the sound is formulaic, that's it's been done before. Of course, it's also possible for a boot heel to wander its way into your septum. Take Mayday for what it is -- raw anthems with purposely blunted dimensions, designed to profess unity, spur action, or raise consciousness. Do this, and the album's 25 tracks from 15 groups -- some established, some not -- will definitely raise a few fists in your crew. Find yourself unaffected by the rousing punk'd cover of Gordon Lightfoot's "Wreck of the Edmund Fitzgerald" -- an obvious yet thoroughly believable shout-out to Mayday's staunchly Canadian stance -- and Mayday just isn't for you. ~ Johnny Loftus, Rovi| Mayday, Vol. 6: Reformation (1995 Album by Various Artists) | |
| Mayday: Bill Champlin Live (1996 Album by Bill Champlin) |
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