Talk to anyone who has been in the Punk scene long enough to care, and you'll discover that they either love the Exploited or hate them -- this is not a band that leaves room for a middle ground. Every song that they write seems to insist that the world's going to hell, and as far as they're concerned it couldn't happen too soon. That kind of nihilism earned them a hiding in the press and scared off all but the most rabid fans, these tending to consist of hardcore anarchy punks and your garden-variety beer-swilling thug. As a result, leading man Wattie Buchan usually has to deliver his songs through hot hailstorms of curses, loogies and bottles. Songs like "Blown to Bits" and "Treat You Like Shit" invite audience members to act out their frustrations openly, often brutally. This is partly why many people wrote them off during Punk's decline in the 1980s as drunken yobs without a lick of talent: they were only half right. Let's Start a War (Said Maggie One Day) (1983) and Horror Epics (1985) are just so virulent that they're brilliant. It's impossible to listen to them without wanting to smash the state, or at least smash the guy next to you.
Chad Driscoll
Beat the bastard
