NoMeansNo – All Roads Lead To Ausfahrt

“Shuffle Songs” is an amazing invention. A spectacular invention. A beautiful thing even. For you see, if it wasn’t for the fact that the first time I gave All Roads Lead To Ausfarht a spin was on shuffle, I don’t think I would ever have really given it a proper listen. Because quite frankly, this CD doesn’t really kick into gear until halfway through the album, and if I didn’t know that great songs were waiting for me at the end of the album, I’m not sure if I could’ve sat through the first half as easily.

NoMeansNo kick off their tenth album in their twenty-two year career with a very sporadic and random song, Wake Up. With a very raw sound, everything is mixed evenly as you hear every guitar chug and the hollow beat of the drums, throw in the ranting vocals and I was thrown off a little. They then pick it up a little with In her Eyes and Mr. In Between – songs with a more decipherable sound and chorus. Still, there’s nothing there that really grabs me, and sadly, nothing does until they pass the halfway mark and enter the 7-minute opus Heaven is The Dust Beneath My Shoes.

This song, with its simple drum beat and repeated guitar riff jumps out instantly, mainly due to the spoken word parts of the song (like the opening verse: “Yesterday, all my friends decided to have a party. But they said I couldn’t come because I was too fat (too fat?!?!) I was really hurt at the time, very angry, but then I thought: I really don’t have anything against gravity, but it really does weigh me down.” While the track does drag on a bit, there’s a certain comical aspect to it that seems to make you want to play it again and again. Of course, it is nothing compared to the song that first gave me hope in this CD: Mondo Nihilissimo 2000. This song has even more intriguing lyrics – Let’s take turns molesting children is just one example. But it stands out and is a solid, old fashion punk song. While ‘Til I Die is a great sing-along anthem.

When it comes down to it, I’m not really into All Roads Lead To Ausfarht. There’s a few songs on here that I really like, but not enough to keep me going back. At least you know it is what it is, they aren’t trying to cash in on any fad. After twenty-two years, NoMeansNo are still just playing for the love of it all.