Chosen by Monk

The punk legends will be proving just how much remains of their rebellious rock ‘n’ roll spirit when they release their first new album in more than 21 years this Spring, from which this is the title track:

For those in need of a history lesson, here it is:

Conflict formed in 1981 in Eltham, a district of Southeast London, when frontman Colin Jerwood, inspired by early encounters with the Pistols ‘Spunk’ bootleg and following The Clash on tour, struck up a friendship with Crass and set about crafting a whole new kind of punk that totally upped the ante in terms anger and confrontation. Crass, the renowned anarchist punk collective, having got Conflict started by releasing their debut single ‘The House That Man Built’ in 1982 on Crass Records, ended in 1984 as they had always intended. Now it was up to Conflict to pick up the baton and run with it. And they did, charging into the battle lines of authority. A genuine threat. An unstoppable battering-ram of power. THE UNGOVERNABLE FORCE.

The years that followed saw Conflict go from strength to strength, and from threat to threat, peaking on 18 April 1987 at the Brixton Academy for the ‘Gathering Of The 5,000’ concert. It was an ambitious gathering of the tribes. A climax and explosion of rage and rebellion that inevitably ended up in a full-scale riot across Brixton – and with the band hopelessly in debt and banned from the majority of major London and ÜK venues.

Undeterred, Conflict continued into the ’90s with their acclaimed ‘Conclusion’ album and remained a mainstay of the live punk circuit throughout. However, after more than two decades since the release of their 2003 ‘There’s No Power Without Control’ set, the band are poised to finally release a new album with ‘This Much Remains’ is set for release on 25 April through Mortarhate/Cadiz Music.

Speaking about the album, and its lyrical themes – which include animal liberation personal loss, environmental issues and those ‘profit over people’ billionaires like Bezos, Musk and Trump – guitarist Gav King says:

Musically we wanted it to evolve from the last records but still have elements of that classic Conflict angry sound that thousands of people fell in love with. This album will not disappoint the diehard supporters and should garner a new wave of activists.

Jerwood adds:

Conflict are stronger than ever – and more relevant than ever.