Atari Teenage Riot - Reset

Atari Teenage Riot were founded in 1992 Berlin as a reaction to a growing Neo-Nazi subculture, but today they’re no less relevant: tragically their fifth album ‘Reset’ with its venomous attacks on government, censorship and humanity, speaks a maligned truth.

With ‘Modern Liars’ dedicated to all “hackers, DJs, activists and riot girls,” atop pounding electronics and the Matrix-baiting dance-hall euphoria of ‘We Are The Internet’ Atari Teenage Riot aren’t just spitting at the void, but offering real hope. Whether it’s self-belief through trance or the simple idea of questioning authority, ‘Reset’ is a ten-track doctrine of radical change.

Atari Teenage Riot have made this their most accessible album yet. Don’t pull a face. The up-tempo chaos of the electronic dance sets the scene for a pre-apocalypse warehouse rave. The lyrics are spat, spoken, shouted and sung, being both revolutionary and approachable.

The aggressive ‘Erase Your Face’ pushes you away with a sullen one-two of dirty bass and looming fear while the album’s closing track, ‘We Are The Internet’ is a dreamy stomp of inclusion and self-importance. Fusing hardcore and techno with a middle finger to authority, Atari Teenage Riot are the bastard love child of The Beastie Boys and Rage Against The Machine.

Their message of revolution is stark social commentary, thinly veiled as vibrant party anthems and until the world pulls itself back from the brink, their music will be as vital as it is captivating. “Man created The Devil and The Devil created the excuse to justify the killing that we don’t see on the news,” they sing. One more reason to stand up.