Someday, PhD students will be studying the songwriting of Jeff Burke — trying to understand how he’s turned something so minimal, so fast, into pure art. How his distinct sound has ignited a whole new school of disciples, each chasing that elusive mix of tension, melody, and heartache. How he became punk rock’s Robert Pollard, perhaps not in mere output, but sure as hell in influence.
Time Won’t Bring Me Down will no doubt be part of that thesis. Ten years after Silent Kill, Radioactivity sound as fierce and urgent as ever — maybe even more so. The title fits: time hasn’t slowed them down one bit. These songs burn with the precision and power that define Burke’s work — minimal chords, maximum emotion. He wrings every drop of feeling out of a single note, then detonates it in a rush of hooks. His voice still carries that perfect storm of angst, melancholy, and defiance.
There’s no filler here — just Radioactivity doing what only they can. Fast, focused, and full of heart and more than a couple of songs that show Burke’s songwriting is still evolving. I simply love this record, that’s all.
On Time Won’t Bring Me Down , Radioactivity are Jeff Burke alongside the Bad Sports crew — Daniel Fried, Gregory Rutherford as full members, with Orville Neeley contributing a solo here and backing there — and his Marked Men brother-in-arms, Mark Ryan. It is out now on Dirtnap Records (U.S.) and Wild Honey Records (EU).