A reunion of alumni from classic-era Public Image Limited, "Yin & Yang" is a definite harkening back to those great days of dub-influenced post-punk. The title track features huge Wobbly bass and Levene's dissonant guitars -- all that's missing are vocals by Lydon and it's virtually classic PIL, which is quite nice to hear. Wobble's vocals are adequate, but it's the music here that speaks loudest.
After a rather forgettable rock/dub crossover ("Strut"), the sharp spoken invectives and near-familiar bass of "Jags & Staffs" recalls "Religion" to some degree. "Mississippi" is an effective down-home pop song with a carefree Americana vibe (though Wobble's sub-sonic bass is still present), and "Fluid" touches on a dub/jazz fusion, with big brass alongside Wobble's stalwart bass. The brief dub of "Vampires" features Little Annie, before "Understand" and "Understand Dub" close things out, with spiky vocals from Nathan Maverick (who I'm not familiar with, but whose vocal style sounds eerily similar to Lydon).
Wobble and Levene form a formidable post-punk duo here, and here's to hoping they can continue on this path if there are to be future endeavors.
Cherry Red/30Hz Records
