Feeder - Renegades - 13.09.2010

I'm a big fan of Feeder ever since my mind was blown by their Isle of Wight Festival 2008 performance, and here's what I think of 'Renegades', the second single from the album of the same name.

It has always been a bit of a mystery how Feeder have never truly broken into the mainstream of music. They have got some of the essential modern rock songs in ‘Just A Day’ and ‘Buck Rogers’, while have also written some truly epic indie anthems in ‘Just The Way I’m Feeling’ and ‘Tumble and Fall’. It may come as a surprise that the trio have never scored a number one album or number one single, and ‘Renegades’ is not going to break that tradition.

Returning to the earlier, heavier and less commercial Feeder sound, ‘Renegades’ thunders along well; very catchy, full of momentum and with a rousing lyric about rebellion and revolution – ‘things can be different, we can belong’. Much like most of frontman Grant Nicholas’ work, it is the recognisable metal-pop style that we immediately associate with the Welsh band, with a typically Nicholas vocal.

After their brief side-project as Renegades, the return of Feeder was a relief for the die-hards, but the album has only sold respectively. In fact, it was their first effort since the grungy ‘Polythene’ in 1997 not to make the top ten, and neither this single or the similarly rocky first release ‘Call Out’ received much airplay. But they are Feeder songs, another good addition to their collection and will form another part of any big fan’s back catalogue.

In an ideal world, ‘Renegades’ would be on Radio One, it deserves to be for its sheer difference in a world dominated by Jason Derulo, Taio Cruz and Roll Deep and could probably attract a new legion of fans. But for now, us Feeder fans can enjoy it in our relative seclusion.

And here for your listening pleasure, is the song 'Renegades'.

NWR