Label: Specialist Subject Records
Released: 31st August 2018
Rating: ★★★★
If Muncie Girls’ 2016 ‘From Caplan To Belsize’ was a DIY breakout, then ‘Fixed Ideals’ is a sterling, stirring, follow-up, mixing punchy indie-punk hooks with the personal and political to significant effect.
Like its predecessor, ‘Fixed Ideals’ displays a deftness of songwriting that belies the heavy themes. There’s no sloganeering here, just sharply-observed lyricism by Lande Hekt that paints a colourful, sometimes trying, picture of life spent in opposition to fascism or dealing with mental health challenges.
It’s occasionally funny too; the use of gammon-faced airbag Jeremy Clarkson as a punchline in ‘Jeremy’ (a song about patriarchy) is delicious. No-one is above reproach, and it’s glorious to see the Muncies using their focused anger in such a way.
‘Fixed Ideas’ is certainly more consistent than ‘From Caplan To Belsize’ too, with every song a potential single – but there’s enough variety it never feels one-paced or pedestrian. Instead, there’s a verve that canters throughout as the album swings from pop-punk to indie-rock and back again. Lead single ‘Picture of Health’ – a song about friendship and supporting each other – is a gritty blast, rooted in everyday mundanity, but ultimately triumphant all the same. It’s this combination of world-weary resignation and wide-eyed optimism that makes Muncie Girls so appealing.
Elsewhere, they continue to marry liberal ideals with fully-formed characters that capture the minutiae of life. Closing number ‘Family of Four’ – a song about growing up in a single-parent household – is pure kitchen-sink melodrama, while ‘Clinic’ recounts Hekt’s experience of starting cognitive behavioural therapy. This is real, visceral stuff that is affecting millions of people, articulated perfectly and powerfully presented.
