British India - Run The Red Light (Album)

This song is by far one of the best songs off the debut album by British India. It must have been written late in the demo-ing process because unlike some of their songs that don’t cut it on record nearly as well as they do live, this track sounds fresh and exciting when you put it on to listen. In fact I think it really hit the mark cause this song never doesn’t seem to get boring listening to it.

It has nearly everything you want in hit song from catchy chorus to dancey groove. It starts off gently but to the point with this repetitive single guitar note in the vein of New Order, and then stadium drums kick in at exactly the point where you start your own air drumming. The thumping beat continues as the James Dean cool vocals have you hooked to hear the chorus. You believe it’s leading into something mega and for once this is a song that actually delivers! The hard-hitting club style intro suddenly goes into catchy as fuck melody before you’re hit with the chorus like an aural orgasm (be careful when reading this article out loud). It simply goes off! You find yourself singing, nay, screaming the chorus out like it’s your anthem, to anyone who cares to listen but what you really want is to find a car. Any car! And put this sucker on full blast with all the windows down. And the lyrics sing, “Run the red light! Run the red light!” It’s enough to make you wet yourself. It’s hard and rock without trying to be AC/DC and has a strong catchy melody but doesn’t lose any of its edge.

It is also a very modern sounding track without sounding like they want to be The Killers, drawing influences from early 80’s Manchester club days crossed with maybe a Sex Pistols kind of angst. The b-side however sounds very much like it’s stuck in the 60’s. In fact it’s a bit like a Jet ballad, which basically means it sounds like the Stones but if you’re one of those people who think that a good song hasn’t been written since Wild horses then you’ll find something to pick about everything. Bottom line it’s a great track and has you singing along just as much as the title track. It pretty much shows a wider breadth of the bands abilities unlike most b-sides that are just leftovers and shit songs that didn’t make the final cut. I think ‘Have you got it yet’ just didn’t fit the mood of the album but is worth its time in the sun as this b-side.

So in conclusion ‘Run the red light’ is a strong contender for song of the year for me. Make sure you get it and keep it in your car. Maybe get a bumper sticker that says you have it too, to warn other drivers of your imminent lack of consideration of road laws.

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