Crown Court - Tick Talk / Hooligans on 'E' 7" Flexi

The hardcore movement grew from working-class angst in the late-70s, but got tainted by racist aggro. Now a new wave of bands are reviving its cathartic anger – without the far-right associations. Crown Court are leaders of a youthful “new Oi!” scene, steeped in the same hard social realities as the trailblazing 80s groups such as the Last Resort and Cockney Rejects but ultra-modern in attitude. The band’s 2016 debut album, Capital Offence, injected fresh spirit into a movement that was regathering its sense of self-worth in the UK after decades of criticism and claims of far-right sympathies.

“My dream is to get on the BBC or something,” says Taylor. “These punk surges come in waves and I’d love to be part of the next boot up the arse. But we won’t change, we won’t beg for it. In a very politically charged moment we are probably everything that scares a curtain-twitching middle-class family.” As well as being the new face of Oi!, Crown Court are also at the forefront of the modern skinhead scene – a subculture inextricably linked to Oi! and similarly reviled thanks to years of headlines about violence and ultra-nationalism. “You’re demonised just like that,” says Taylor, clicking his fingers. “Quickly, assumptions are made just for being young, working class and a skinhead. It is annoying but I will never grow my hair and never hang up these boots.”