Sludgeworth release "Second Time Around", their second album 30 years later

Chicago melodic punk outfit Sludgeworth have released "Second Time Around", their second full-length and the follow-up to a debut that came out three decades ago. The record is available for purchase on Bandcamp.

Per the band's Bandcamp bio, the album grew out of two things: their reunion at Riot Fest and a run of weekly, booze-fueled jam sessions. What came out of those hangouts is a batch of melodic punk rock songs built around the sound that defined the group in the first place.

The writing is more focused than the casual origin might suggest. Several tracks deal with looking back and with advice the band would hand its younger self, including "Can't Change Yesterday" and "Hurry Up, I Don't Have Forever". Others turn to the present and to national uncertainty, notably "Simulation" and "Tipping Point".

Musically, the album leans on guitar riffs, standout drum work and clean vocals, landing in the same melodic punk territory occupied by No Use For A Name and Propagandhi. Highlights on the tracklist include "Hold Steady", "Our Better Angels" and "Trouble Brewing".

The end result plays like a record that could have arrived in the early 90s had the band never gone away, and it makes a case that veteran punk acts can still deliver, even with a thirty-year gap between albums.