The week before Cleave's arrival was spent listening to Therapy?'s 1992 mini-album Pleasure Death. Now amped up on Marshall Records, and with Troublegum's Chris Sheldon back at the controls, they still give that group a run for their money.
"Some of us have nothing left," laments frontman Andy Cairns on Success? Success is Survival, but it's a predicament that never blights the trio themselves over these 32 minutes.
Nods to inspirations The Ramones, Killing Joke and Helmet all feature across Cleave, as do moments recalling Therapy?'s own history. But a sometimes questionable snare whack aside, it's startling how they manage to sound so fresh, while also powering through with a last-band-standing belligerence.
There's so much for the 30-year plan.
