Fine Equipe Moral D'Acier

Released
6th November 2024
Label 
Offside
Format

10 Inch

Black / Single Sided / Etched B-Side

£16.00

‘Et j’aimerais qu’enfin disparaissent ces souffrances. Et j’aimerais qu’enfin cessent toutes ces maltraitances. Rejoins les rangs de la cause, rejoins les rangs du changement’ (Sans Souffrance Ajoutee) ‘I would like this suffering to finally disappear. And I would like all this abuse to finally stop. Join the ranks of the cause, join the ranks of change’ (Without Added Suffering)

Fine Equipe (Fine Team), who feature members of Syndrome 81 and Grisaille, are not a straight edge band themselves, but their music is an explicit tribute to the straight edge bands who helped to shape their own initial ethical and intellectual engagement with hardcore.  This I’m sure will provoke a shared recognition among many of us, including those of us who have never shared this specific commitment.

Of course, the musical expression of straight edge bands is a decidedly broad one.  The starting point for Moral D’Acier (Steel Morale) can, perhaps, be narrowed down to both the mid-1980s’ originators of the youth crew sound, and the wave of more melodically inclined bands who reanimated it during the early to mid-2000s.  There is always a danger when a band, no matter how musically talented, seek to pay homage to a specific genre.  It can lack the fire of authenticity, inadvertently dissolve into pale pastiche.  But there are no such concerns here – Fine Equipe absolutely nail it.

Across the five tracks, the swaying bass lines, emotionally cathartic peaks, and impassioned group vocals are delivered with a high voltage vigour.  Shades of Go It Alone and The First Step are subtly conjured, but this is a blistering record in its own right.  And, with Fine Equipe’s own musical pedigree, it is little surprise that they prove notably adept at lacing their onslaught with darkly enticing melody.  Meanwhile, the French vocals tackle themes of collective action, animal rights, and the fight for personal growth.  So, dust off your two-step because Fine Equipe mean business.

—Foundation Vinyl