Sleaford Mods have released The Demise Of Planet X, the Nottingham duo’s latest attempt to make sense of a country — and a wider world — that rarely gives them a shortage of material. We also have a full album review.
The album arrives on 16 January through Rough Trade and follows 2023’s UK Grim. Jason Williamson and Andrew Fearn remain recognisable immediately, but the new record expands the palette with a notably collaborative cast.
Guests include Gwendoline Christie and Big Special on ‘The Good Life’, alongside appearances from Aldous Harding, Sue Tompkins, Liam Bailey and Snowy. Fearn also takes a larger production role, giving the familiar minimal framework more colour and movement.
Anger with somewhere else to go
The interesting development is not that Williamson has suddenly stopped being angry. It is where that anger is being directed. He has spoken about therapy, introspection and pulling back from the habit of simply attacking other artists, while still writing about nationalism, social media, trauma and the general absurdity surrounding modern life.
That makes The Demise Of Planet X sound less like a retreat and more like an attempt to sharpen the target.
Sleaford Mods have survived because their minimalism has never meant standing still. The basic ingredients remain brutally simple; what they choose to do inside those restrictions continues to change.
