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Guaranteed to offend, shock, provoke thought, and make you laugh, Lust Control's re-release of We Are Not Ashamed comes with all sorts of bonuses.  There are live tracks, an audio commentary by band founder Doug Van Pelt, promos, and the complete _This is a Condom Nation_ album, which had been included on a previous compilation, but had been mastered in mono.  

Lust Control is as punk as punk gets – spoken/chanted/sung vocals over a bombastic guitar and drum sound that is often indistinguishable from one song to the next.   The topic here is sexual sin – how it causes havoc within the world, how it divides relationships, and how that sin needs to be dealt with (and forgiven).   Trademark Lust Control theme song "Grace" appears four times, at the beginning and end of each studio album.

"You Make Me Puke", a blunt statement about lukewarm Christians, is sure to please those who don't take themselves seriously, and irritate those who do.   "Mad at the Girls" concerns itself with the selling of sex through media, and "The Big 'M'" condemns autoeroticism, pointing out that any substitute for sex within marriage is, in fact, sinful.   The latter also appears as a bonus karaoke track, which makes me wonder which high school band is going to get expelled from their youth group after performing it.

One thing should be noted here: while the lyrics will disturb some, and cause others to chortle gleefully, there is a serious underlying message here that many churches do not touch: dealing with sexual sin and its consequences.   Further, I can guarantee that fans of punk/thrash bands who would never give CCM a chance will listen to this.  For that alone, Lust Control deserves attention.   If you recall the late '80's and bands like Black Flag and One Bad Pig fondly, buy this disc now.

Brian A. Smith
19 December 2006