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Today's Shelf Pull: Dexys Midnight Runners, Searching for the Young Soul Rebels

A firm backbone, a voice full of nerves

Brass, taut rhythms and a voice that will not settle: Dexys Midnight Runners make Searching for the Young Soul Rebels an album of discipline and exposed nerves.

Dexys Midnight Runners make Searching for the Young Soul Rebels feel less like a statement of taste than a matter requiring immediate attention. The brass is assertive, the rhythm section taut, and the singing refuses to settle politely inside the arrangements.

For today's vinyl shelf pull at Kilmorna in Listowel, that tension is the way into this 1980 album. Soul gives it movement and warmth; post-punk economy keeps the gestures sharp. Nothing needs to sprawl to make its presence felt.

Listen first to the relationship between voice and horns, rather than choosing one to follow. Kevin Rowland sounds exposed even when he sounds combative. The arrangements provide a firm frame, but they do not make the person inside it seem comfortable.

That distinction keeps the record interesting. Forceful singing can sometimes close a song down, leaving the listener with only one possible response. Here, the vulnerability complicates the insistence. You hear determination, but also the effort involved in keeping it upright.

On the shelf today

Dexys Midnight Runners - Searching for the Young Soul Rebels

LP / Soul / Funk / 1980

EUR33 / Available now

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