Sleaford Mods – Divide And Exit

Allying strong words and minimal electronics, Sleaford Mods’ second ‘proper’ album (or sixth if you go back through the early CD-R efforts) the self-released Divide And Exit was not only Andrew Fearn and Jason Williamson’s most effective artistic expression to that point, it also truly captured the taste of a land souring by the day. Now set for a reissue through Rough Trade Records to mark the record’s tenth anniversary, the fully remastered album – complete with a limited-edition LP sleeve designed by Cold War Steve – offers a chance to fully appreciate a band beginning to hit their artistic stride while acknowledging and commiserating that many of the dark forces that inspired its creation linger on. Yet once again it is possible revel in the hopeful anger that underpins Sleaford Mods’ blasts of outrage and electro. “Where our previous album Austerity Dogs barked a directionless yet solid form of anger, Divide & Exit then carried this basic form of class consciousness,” says Williamson of the vision behind the record, both musically and lyrically. “After the release of Austerity Dogs we realised we had seemingly created a formula,” he adds. “Andrew just took the formula and ran with it and his music started to sound much more compact and urgent.”

Initial pressing comes with alternate art work.