IDLES | TANGK | TALK TO NOBODY

Cast your mind back to the late 2000’s, and imagine yourself in the dingy disco room of a pool hall in Bristol. There, you might find IDLES’ Joe Talbot and Adam Devonshire (Dev) running their ‘debauched’ club night early in their career, surrounded by the likes of Johnny Marr, The Cribbs, and Dizzy Rascal (though maybe not staying too long).
Talbot cites that the early-years pool halls were some of the more intimidating gigs they have faced. Now, having conquered the international stages of Glastonbury, Jimmy Fallon (and even CBeebies) the band know what they want to say, how they want to say it, and fear no stage. Love is the ‘Fing is travelling worldwide.
TANGK is IDLES’ fifth and latest album and arguably the most delicate to date. Powerhouse-blazing tracks like ‘Gift Horse’, ‘Dancer’ and ‘Grace’ (the latter featuring a AI-powered deepfake of Coldplay’s Chris Martin from ‘Yellow’), were released as singles prior to the album launch in mid-February, and the tear-jerking ethereal piano-flight of ‘A Gospel’ and the trip-hop-esque melancholy of ‘Roy’, pay testament to the mastery of Joe’s songwriting, the skill of his vocal range, and the maturity of IDLES’ sound.
While IDLES are known for their ‘violent’, raw and explosive sounds, songwriting and performance which, this is driven by passion, rather than anger. In other words, like atoms we collide, we conflict, we clash, and, we come together.
The IDLES charge is electric and the energy unmatched to any performance we have seen in Bristol so far. Privileged to be a fly on the wall of the balcony of the Marble Factory, the band energised mosh pits, crowd surfing, an unrelenting and visceral urge to dance and move, people perched on the shoulders of others or hurdling over the barriers beyond the front row, newly purchased TANGK vinyl thrown about and reaching new heights (hopefully surviving the gig), and even guitarist Lee Kiernan plunging into the swelling crowd - only traceable by following the long chord of his guitar into the chaos. There’s nothing quite like it.
The new albums overwhelming mantra that ‘Love is the ‘Fing’ demonstrates that among the chaos and confusion of the world we live in, love prevails. In time of turbulence and unrest, people are on edge, people are unhappy, and people are fed up with the world around them. There’s a lot of anxiety around, and this is particularly pertinent with Joe and guitarist, Mark Bowen, recently experiencing fatherhood with newfound responsibility and reflection towards the world our children will inherit. But, love is the thing that brings us together, charges our passion brings change.

[@SeriousJB]

Tangk really is their best album not gonna lie

[@jamers505]

pretty torn between tangk and crawler tbh, both incredibly emotive

[@ravijntje8724]

But Joy is so good too.

[@prettyaverage97]

Crawler and Tangk are my favourites definitely, such absolute bangers

[@sunnysyl7]

Love Crawler

[@tomnavarrotorroglosa3535]

Me encanta el efecto / echo a casi echo , en todas las canciones el sonido le meten un cluk que aumenta el mello . AMAZING

[@luisceniceros3453]

You guys have changed my life in the best of ways never stop !

[@tomnavarrotorroglosa3535]

El mejor grupo de la historia ( DE LA MÍA , SI )

[@ddgffs]

absolutely beautiful record and it's their best to date by far. and! Nigel and LCD❤

[@kimvanfelton3413]

Joe looks good here. I mean good as in healthy. Not as a superficial thirst comment.

[@lonnaseeley6807]

He looks amazing 😍Very healthy and quite sexy 🥰 Those dimples make me melt into a puddle 🫠

[@chongpooka2769]

AF

[@andrewt836]

I think I’m the only one that prefers their old stuff.

[@guy8029]

I don’t think you’re alone, TANGK has been pretty divisive amongst the fan base - some love it, some dislike it, and it’s grown on others. Me personally, I love the album, it built on a few of the sounds and ideas of CRAWLER, but it’s definitely a grower not a shower album, a few songs I wasn’t sure of on first listen, and now I love them. I also really love the older stuff, but I’m looking forward to what the future brings for the IDLES sound.

[@Fl0d3r]

I really dig with IDLES when they drop Ultra Mono, incredible album.I wasn't so into them with their older stuff actually.

[@guy8029]

@@Fl0d3r Again crazy how different the tastes can be within the fanbase, I would say Brutalism/Ultra Mono are my least favourite albums overall, however, you have great songs on those albums, like Mother, Divide and Conquer, and then basically the first 6 tracks of Ultra Mono. I think I sort of ruined Ultra Mono for myself, I was so excited that IDLES had released new music (I only got into them through hearing Mercedes Marxist on BBC 6 Music) that I listened to it every day driving my work van, that I kind of overplayed it. I listened again recently though and still really enjoy the album, but I think either Joy or Crawler are my favourite, though TANGK is becoming a strong contender.

[@Fl0d3r]

It was the perfect third album for me, you know when you have to make something "different" because the previous two sounds the same and it's time to move on something new but...still with the IDLES identity, but I really love all the stuff, even the one they don't like anymore (Welcome EP)@@guy8029

[@Fl0d3r]

It's really the perfect third album for me, quietly moving on from the sound of their 2 previous albums (which were quite similar) and before the "electronic/synth/piano/weird noises" they started to do with CRAWLER@@guy8029

[@d_walsh]

I don't like it. Its loses its punch after the third song. Ive listened to it ten times. Its quite boring after ROY and gospel. Maybe Bowen took off on riff loop manipulations this go round. Crawler and UltraMono are better of course. I think joe is getting soft with love and has run out of cliches. Oi !!!