Opening with the album’s title track, a proper boot stomping street punk anthem that ticks all the Rancid boxes – shared vocals, thunderous bass lines and a shout-along chorus, all in under two and half minutes.
And it’s a formula that they stick to throughout the album, sixteen tracks that all clock in under the three minute mark. And it’s a plan that works, nothing outstays it’s welcome and the songs sound almost instantly familiar, not that you’ve heard it before, more like they’re like they’re so well crafted that you’ll be skanking around the record player and singing (or is that shouting?) along in no time.
With songs of love, loss, loyalty and independence, Tomorrow Never Comes is a classic Rancid album, it may not be rocket science, but it is punk rock ‘n’ roll, and in that field, Rancid can still go toe to toe with the best. 8/10
‘Tomorrow Never Comes‘ will be available from June 2nd via Epitaph Records.
Eoin Lawlor
www.overdrive.ie 2023