Album Review: Prong – Live And Uncleansed (Steamhammer)

Prong will release ‘Live and Uncleansed’ on March 6th, 2026, via Steamhammer. A live album, it features tracks from their Summer 2025 anniversary tour where they celebrated Prong’s classic 1994 album release ‘Cleansing’. The album was recorded over seven nights in July and August 2025 and includes venues and festivals like Wacken Open Air, Alcatraz, the iconic Colos-Saal in Aschaffenburg, and the Hirsch club in Nuremberg.

I’ve never quite got on with Prong and because of that, I’m pretty sure I’ve never seen them live, aside from a brief moment at a Bloodstock, I think. So, deciding to listen to a live album by a band I don’t really care about might seem an odd choice. Except I like to have my mind changed and I actually figured this might be a cool way to see if my feelings on the band might shift based on a set of recorded live songs that features a crowd hungry for what they have to offer. Especially as I know that they command quite a response from their fans.

A response that I find to be a bit muted throughout, but that’s more because the recordings are so clean. I’ll never understand why anyone would want a live album to sound like a studio release. Let us hear the crowd, muddy it up, and make me feel like I’m there. It’s an aspect missing on a lot of the tracks on this album.

This is just me though, and I get that there will be plenty that appreciate the improved sound quality of the release. Especially as it’s sound quality that helps Prong and tracks like Revenge… Best Served Cold, The Descent, No Question, Not of This Earth, and the beloved Snap Your Fingers, Snap Your Neck (even I dig this track). Prong sound good, there’s no doubt about that and it’s easy to forget just how varied their sound can be. Yet, with this being an album focused live set of songs, it’s also easy to remember that it’s an album with filler.

I’ll be honest, I’ve not had my mind changed about the band having spent some time with this album, even if I can respect their importance in the scene and why so many enjoy what they do. It’s those people who will enjoy this album the most. Especially as the album does come with an additional trio of bonus live tracks too. All of which are pretty cool, even with the ‘B-side’ aspects, as each have a more boisterous crowd response too.

How much do you love Prong? Just like me, your mileage for this release will vary depending on that answer.

Prong – Live and Uncleansed Track Listing:

1. Revenge… Best Served Cold (Live)
2. Inheritance (Live)
3. The Descent (Live)
4. One Outnumbered (Live)
5. No Question (Live)
6. Sublime (Live)
7. Not Of This Earth (Live)
8. Home Rule (Live)
9. Ultimate Authority (Live)
10. Snap Your Fingers, Snap Your Neck (Live)
11. However It May End (Live)
12. Out Of This Misery (Live) (Bonus Track)
13. Corpus Delecti (Live) (Bonus Track)
14. Whose Fist is It Anyway (Live) (Bonus Track)

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