Honesty is the aim of protest, and XTRMNTR brings it to the table. It has the same effect as Rage Against the Machine, not in the message or outline of the music but in the practice of rebellion. Primal Scream has the context of the times on their side with this release, fighting against what was, at the time, a reasonable blowout of light rock and pop efforts in the face of a cultural implosion a few years prior. They were skimming around the edges at that time, Screamadelica doing well to keep them afloat. But it is not until XTRMNTR that they hit on something truly unique, something that could very easily define the band once it is time to weigh their legacy. Running through this album is a venom like nothing of its time, a series of observations indicating no turning back. Twenty years ago, the point of no return was reached. A great worry for those listening twenty-five years later.
With a burning rage and louder sound Primal Scream finally falls into an interesting spot of sound. XTRMNTR is sonic violence crashing into primed targets and unsuspecting listeners alike. Distorted and whining pieces like Accelerator toe the line between noise rock and electronic suspense. Primal Scream finds comfort in this blend. Exterminator has a better feel for both their political points and the venomous instrumentals working these points over. Cultural narcosis is observed by Bobby Gillespie and the band, featuring Kevin Shields of My Bloody Valentine at this point in their artistic cycle. A harsh sound for a harsh message. It feels almost inevitable and the trouble now for XTRMNTR is building higher than it did on release, to be vague about the details but specific enough to capture an unchanged mood. Their disillusionment with the world around them is something still felt and getting to the roots of their anger is done with vivid and often controversial imagery.
Such is the raw beauty of something like Swastika Eyes or follow-up tracks Pills and Blood Money. It is all too easy for artists to denounce what they disagree with. To make a passionate display of why they are so enraged, to put their thoughts to use with the skills of their musical integrity, is another level. Few are capable of it but there are more doing it now than ever before, and the likes of XTRMNTR are to thank. Fewer can say their work will have the same impact as XTRMNTR, a shockingly warm album at times given the consistent anger spurning on the best bits. Yet Keep Your Dreams is tucked in there, and even with its bad blood it rips through with a caring tone. This defiance floods Primal Scream and makes their very best works sound like a singular message to the listener, crying out for them not to give up. It is this energy and tone which counters the harsh criticism heard throughout XTRMNTR. What it needed most was balance, and that is what it gets in its latter half.
Do not mark your first Primal Scream experience with Screamadelica. That dud is nothing compared to the brutality of XTRMNTR. A grinding against the cultural norms of the time is what makes Primal Scream stand out here. Instrumental bliss from beginning to end and with it a desire for real change. It is something which still guides the band now though the results are rather withered and obvious. Rough sounds and a sense of danger bring out the best in Primal Scream here – their series of bold builds to a brighter future comes not from seeing where the problems can be fixed but from where a fire can be started. XTRMNTR has a frank and disgusting view of the world and from this Gillespie makes it clear that, even now, the world would be better off without the scourge of the human race. A bitter pill to swallow, but the extremes of his argument are maintained well and are harder still to argue with.
