Rubella Ballet were the band who bridged the gaps between the Sex Pistols, X-Ray Spex, and Crass. Now, 35 years on from their inception, Rubella Ballet have issued Planet Punk – their first album of new material for over 25 years. Already, lauded as the group’s crowning achievement, it is quite evidently a labour of love, and that love shines through – a beacon of positivity illuminating the multilayered mists of lies, disinformation and obfuscation. “The overriding message of the album is not to believe everything you hear on the news, or read in the newspapers – as the very same people we are protesting against are those compiling the news” explains Sid. Throughout Planet Punk, both the medium and its message are rendered with skill and passion to produce an album that equals, and in some respects exceeds, the best of Rubella Ballet’s back catalogue. In particular, Sid’s abilities as a multi-instrumentalist and producer are made manifest, while Zillah’s vocals display impressive authority across several of the disc’s 15 tracks. Providing a neon-lit route map of post-millennial oppression and exploitation, the album hits its lyrical targets with precision. Planet Punk also contains highly motivated and political songs about a variety of subjects including the Illuminati, government brainwashing, the New World Order agenda, global corruption, the creation of new strains of flu virus to reduce the human population. It covers issues such as what really happened during 9/11 to atrocities that have taken place closer to home, including the police cover up of the 1989 Hillsborough Stadium disaster. Whatever expectations you may have about this album, be prepared to have them both confounded and surpassed. ‘Planet Punk’ is not only a superb summation of everything that made Rubella Ballet unique but also takes the group into new, exciting realms. Explore with them.