Damaged Goods

Review: It doesn't get much bluesier than this new outing from the irrepressible Wild Billy and his sometime collaborators The Chatham Singers. You just need to hear a fraction of 'The Good Times Are Killing Me' to feel the blood, sweat and tears buried beneath the gutsy guitar work, staccato harmonica lines and drum stabs to picture a smoky, boozy bar scene somewhere in Nowheresville.

Laying claim to a catalogue of rough and ready business stretching back to the 1970s, Childish's formative adventures in punk can still be heard, offering a rawer edge than many of his blues contemporaries - which is saying something. Tracks like 'Main Line' boast the kind of cacophonies that fill rooms with frantic dancers, 'When I Was A Cowboy (Out On The Western Plains)' exemplifies a more journeyman side, while 'All My Feelings' and 'Ranscombe Farm Boogie' swing with freight train rhythms.