Orange County's finest Fu Manchu return with this their tenth full length release, and what should we expect from one of metal's most misunderstood quartet? Never able to be categorized, and dependant upon who you speak to, descriptions vary from stoner to crossover punk to desert rock (whatever that is??). Whatever you choose to call them, what is certain is "We Must Obey" is a hard rockin' album in the truest sense of the term.

While 2004's  "Start The Machine" showed glimpses of the heavier direction "We Must Obey" delivers, and is quite simply the bands most aggressive record to date. With fuzz laden guitars and the addition of Scott Reeders bombastic drums (no not THAT Scott Reeder), "Start The Machine" now seems over produced and unnecessarily refined. Vocalist and guitarist Scott Hill's well know love of early 80's crossover punk is infused and influences every riff and drum fill. From the stop start irregular breaks to the low end production, you can only think Black Flag and Minor Threat would be proud.

"We Must Obey" couldn't be described as having so much of a flow, but more a torrent of high octane in your face, Californian sun fuelled heaviness. Even the cover of the classic Cars tune "Moving In Stereo" has been reworked and never sounded so good. Or brutal for that matter. With distortion galore this maybe Fu Manchu, but not as we know it. The three years between records can only have been a turbulent, anger ridden time to have inspired such a tempestuous offering. This is crossover punk for the new millennia.