Coincidence or not, the fact that both Wire, and the band many consider to be their closest transatlantic cousins, Mission Of Burma, have chosen now to come back with shit-hot new material is deliriously wonderful news for those of us too young to catch them the first time around.

The first thing that strikes you about "ONoffON" is how little they seem to have aged since the days of "VS." and "Signals, Calls, And Marches". This, like Wire, is largely because of the fact that it's only recently that most of the indie world has caught up with them. The fuzzy, minor-key guitars and fast/slow dynamics have been appropriated by emo kids the world over, while the sharp, edgy rhythm section and guitar stabs have been picked up by the latest new wave of new wave of new wave guitar bands. Finally, and this is perhaps the most striking thing, it's hard to escape how much songs like "Falling" and "Hunt Again" sound like Guided By Voices. It set me running back to my old MOB albums just to see if this similarity had always been there. And, yeah, it kind of has, but not this much. In view of GBV's recently announced split, this new material is fortuitous.

The best songs of course, are the ones that sound like Mission Of Burma. The anthemic "Wounded World", which kicks off the fiercer and harder rocking side two, is the best track, the inclusion of a cover version of "Class War" as the Japanese bonus track sits well alongside MOB original "Nicotine Bomb", and "Absent Mind" closes the album as well as any song not called "That's How I Escaped My Certain Fate" could hope to.

Perhaps not as high profile in reunion terms as The Pixies, this is, if anything, worthy of greater attention simply for the sheer quality of the material on offer. It's also a necessary reminder to all the young upstarts of exactly how high the post-punk bar has already been set, and for that I think we should all take a moment to give our thanks. And buy this album. -Ian Martin, June.06.04

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