To reverse Howard Devoto‘s dismissive comment on leaving Buzzcocks, Thirteen really have managed to make what some might have called a clean old hat unhealthily fresh again. Ego Trap is a rip-roaring and tumultuous blast through some of the defining moments of punk rock history that, paradoxically and simultaneously, does not at any point sound anything but contemporary and completely of its own time. That’s a bonus for those of us old enough to recognise those moments, but you could come to this without that baggage and be ignited by the sheer power and glory of these six tracks. But Thirteen can deliver way more than just a tip of the hat to familiar forms. This is dirty rock ‘n roll, the immortal kind that really needs no excuses and offers no apologies. Blazing in wit...