One Way System 1981-84 – Captain Oi!

Although One Way System were formed in the small Lancashire town of Fleetwood at the back of the first wave of punk bands, originating in late 79, it took them another two years to release their first material. By this point they had become leading exponents of what is now known as the UK82 sound: short, three-chord walls of sound underpinned with sledgehammer drums and topped off by pointed lyrics. No time for intricacy on these tracks, just plough through in a race to the end, an amphetamine-fuelled assault on the ears and the very definition of what most people think of as punk rock. Although best known for their anthemic track Jerusalem, they released a couple of albums and a handful of 7” records in the next three years, meeting with various levels of success. Captain Oi! have brought these releases together on a three-disk box set. The first two disks contain their debut album, All Systems Go, and follow-up long player, Writing On The Wall, while the third is probably the most interesting side of the set, containing non LP singles such as Stab the Judge and Give Us A Future alongside their appropriate rework of Slade’s Cum On Feel The Noize, and a handful of demo tracks. One of the northwest’s biggest contributors to the early punk scene, this collection is well overdue and reminds us that it wasn’t just southern cities that had a thriving punk scene. It truly was a national phenomenon.

Nik