Album Review: Möngöl Hörde - 'Möngöl Hörde'

It has been a very long time since we’ve seen this kind of aggression coming from Frank Turner. Teaming up with ex-Million Dead bandmate Ben Dawson on drums and Sleeping Souls keys player Matt Nasir on guitar, we hear the Englishman departing from his usual folk/punk style for a return to his straight-up hardcore roots.

Taking notes from hardcore legends like Refused, Möngöl Hörde’s debut album is heavy as all hell - a beautiful mess of guttural screams and spoken word that melds to create something incredible. The self-referential ‘Make Way’ kicks things off and the track is simply huge! It’s quite obvious why this was the first taste that the band gave us, because it shows us exactly what Möngöl Hörde is about, and is an equally good indication of the band’s style.

Lyrically, Möngöl Hörde is much less serious than Turner’s previous work. For example, Turner describes the first song the band ever wrote, ‘Tapeworm Uprising’ as being “about Natalie Portman's tapeworm using her as a glove puppet to lead an uprising in Hollywood.” Another great example comes from ‘Winky Face: The Mark of a Moron’ - “Motherfucking semi-colon and the open bracket / Shakespeare and Orwell must be turning in their graves / Or at least turning their heads sideways”

In some ways, on the surface, Möngöl Hörde still feels like a solo project for Turner, which given how far his career has progressed, isn’t too shocking. However, the more you listen to the album, the more you realise that Dawson’s pounding drums and Nasir’s fantastic riffing are a true driving force for the album, and when the three musicians play off each other, complementing each other perfectly, and never overpowering one another, is when this record really stands out.

Möngöl Hörde probably isn’t going to cause some kind of musical revolution - but hey, that doesn’t mean it isn’t a damn good record. If you’re a punk fan that is sick of taking everything so damn seriously, then this one’s for you!

1. Make Way
2. Weighed and Found Waiting
3. Tapeworm Uprising
4. Casual Threats From Weekend Hardmen
5. Staff To Refund Counter
6. The Yurt Locker
7. Stillborn Unicorn
8. Winky Face: The Mark of a Moron
9. Weak Handshake
10. Your Problem
11. How The Communists Ruined Christmas
12. Blistering Blue Barnacles
13. Hey Judas