This is Consolidated's seventh full-length studio album, and while perhaps their most musically diverse,certain political themes remain a constant feature of all their work.
It's a musical journey which touches on blues, rock, industrial and hiphop. The End of Meaning has several outstanding tracks: I rather liked the shambling hip-hop of You Go Dude; the anti-porn rant of Speech and Harm ; and the industrial intensity of Fall of the Culture Industry . A sprinkling of snippets from demos, actions and media soundbites also feature.
Gender issues, while a significant focus, are by no means their only concerns: animal and human rights; racism; economic injustice; violence; and the culture industry; have all been explored over the years - and continue to be on The End of Meaning.
A great album, keeping political music alive and kicking.
In the next issue of Peace News we talk with Adam Sherburne of Consolidated about politics, music, life, and in particular their earlier album The Business of Punishment which - amongst other things - critiqued the US prison-industrial complex.