The Formative Years - Sick Of It All
In the 1990s, any band that was able to lay claim on being remotely associated with the state of New York was more than warmly welcomed with open arms in Germany, thanks to ZAP magazine and its efforts in relentlessly championing bands from New York.
I quite liked SOIA’s self-titled 7” on Revelation Records as well as their debut album Blood, Sweat and No Tears on Relativity Records and was quite excited to be able to hitch a ride to see them live in 1991. The show was a lot of fun and I made sure to check in on them whenever I could as they evolved, became more successful and an accomplished tour de force in the realm of live shows.
Case in point, Sick Of It All’s live incarnation at Rheinkultur 1994, which to this day remains one of my funnest concert experiences: After playing a set at another big European festival in the Netherlands, SOIA ran from the stage, jumped on their bus, drove to Bonn, ran straight to the stage and burst straight into belting out songs, most of which had appeared on their 1992 album Just Look Around.
Capturing the band between their Revelation Records / In-Effect Records days and the signing of their first major label deal, Just Look Around remains a timeless masterpiece that has withstood the test of time with not merely its well composed, compact songs, but also the polished production which nuancefully accentuates SOIA idiosyncratic aggressiveness, with drummer Armand Majidi providing the foundation, thereby elevating SOIA’s song-writing into new spheres.
Having evolved and determined to not merely release a Blood, Sweat And No Tears part 2, Just Look Around had it all – the underlying raw simplicity the clobberin’ Alleyway Crew sound became known for, more thought-through, energetic song-writing chops infused with catchy guitar harmonics, a myriad of beautifully drily composed, varied breakdowns and the singing style shifting quite a few notches towards screaming.
