Review: Snuff – “Come And Have A Go If You Think You’re Rachmaninoff”

SBÄM Records – 09 Jun 2023

Everyone’s favorite band named Snuff release acoustic treat.

If there was ever a band whose songs begged for acoustic renditions, it is probably Snuff. Sure, their albums are typically loaded with a mixture of songs that are noisy chaos, which may not translate as well, and some of the best in melodic punk you could ever ask for which, thankfully and 100%, does.

Of the ten songs on the album, the lion’s share are off of the 1998 Tweet Tweet My Lovely LP with four songs. 2000’s Numb Nuts gets a single track, and then the other five are taken from 2019’s There’s A Lot of It About onwards; although they are not presented in chronological order.

While Snuff could easily have just unplugged and recorded, with Duncan Redmonds (vocals, drums usually) singing, from the start with “All You Need” you’ll find that they’ve really put their hearts into this, with backing and harmonizing vocals and more. Duncan’s voice is unique but, let’s be honest, a bit more grizzled nowadays. WIth the second track “One of Those Days,” it really gets a bit gravelly and, with the clean backing vocals, adds a ton more emotion and feeling to the song over it’s already excellent electrified original.

Throughout the album Snuff exudes a playfulness as instruments that aren’t typically found in their already loaded repertoire make appearances (harmonicas, strings, and more). “EFL Vs. Concrete” becomes a slower, more sedate tune. Whereas “Chalice of Lunacy” (originally “Drink Freely from the Chalice of Lunacy”) has a surprisingly peppy structure and sound.

Rachmaninoff (we always have to truncate these album titles) closes out with three songs from Tweet Tweet My Lovely, starting with “Nick Motown.” The original is the first song on that album to break out the brass, and is a rousingly energetic track. Here, it is deconstructed into a much slower, somber number. With the original I always imagined it being from the viewpoint of someone anxiously awaiting the return to their loved one’s embrace (maybe the long separation due to touring, even?). Here, though… suddenly the mood shifts. Maybe this is memory of love lost… likely for good. It’s a bit of a heartbreaker, really.

This is followed up with “Thief.” I may say I love a lot of Snuff songs, and I do. But “Thief” is absolutely excellent, and one that I regularly find myself singing in the car more than many others, what with that odd cadence on the brass, and the verses that lead into that rousing chorus. All of that is here as well, even the backing vocals. The Hammond organ is swapped for a piano, and Redmonds surprisingly delivers the vocals in an understated manner, letting the music take the lead.

If the lead vocals were subdued on “Thief,” then they go full bore for album closer “Take Me Home.” The original, classic end-of-night song feels like our young narrator is well and trolleyed, both tired and wired at the same time. I’m sure we’ve all been there. This new version adds a mournful violin, and it’s slower tempo coupled with Redmonds seemingly exhausted yet soulful vocal delivery, evokes a barfly past their prime. That last old one to clear out of a lonely pub at the end of the night.

I’ve been a fan of Snuff for a long time, and I’m surprised it took them this long to do an acoustic album. They don’t mess around, long-time fans and newbies alike will appreciate the care and composition that went into unplugging these songs, even if the uninitiated aren’t familiar with the source material. Diehard fans, collectors and completists can pick up the album on physical media via the Snuff Big Cartel shop in the UK, and the SBÄM shop for the EU. Expect it to also be available at the usual streaming services.