aaamusic | On 19, Sep 2011

 

Y’know, it’s odd. For such a straight-ahead, no frills collection of twelve jangly guitar pop songs that are indebted to The Beach Boys, Early Beatles (there’s even a song called I Wanna Hold Your Hand) and the Nuggets collection, it’s incredibly difficult to tell whether this is a good album or not. Usually it’s a case of “do you find three minute pop songs fun as fuck or do you find it insults your intelligence?” And the answer to that question would determine whether or not you like the album but with this particular record it’s not so easy. Allow me to elaborate.

 

Let’s start with the bad news, call me crazy but the band very rarely sound particularly into it on the record, especially on the albums early songs. They’re not sleepwalking through the record by any means, but, take the track Tasty Fruit, this might be the nonexistent production but it all sounds drab, when especially when this tracks flamenco tinged guitar lines should sparkle and compliment the vocal excellently, unfortunately it just makes the track drag on for what seems like ages, boring, rather than hypnotic. It’s the same deal with Fear Your Face, quite apart from the horrendous title, the track saunters along on some admittedly delectable harmonies and not much else of note, nothing about the track makes one desperately want to listen to it, and instead of coming out as simple genius the track just goes in one ear and straight out the other, leaving no lasting impression.

 

However, just as the bad side of the album nearly kneecaps it where it stands the good side is astonishing. The songwriting on this album is excellent, and is pretty much uniformly so throughout. Blindfold yourself and randomly point out a song on the track listing and you are guaranteed a stormer of a chorus, charming guitar riffs and melodies to make anyone swoon. Take penultimate track Circle, which is simultaneously the heaviest and most charming thing in here on not much more than a couple of guitar riffs and some power chords on the chorus. This is where the simplicity of the album pays off, and it becomes exciting, fun and charming all at once.

 

In all, this album just about gets away with less than inspired production and some arrangements that need work due to sheer twenty four carat songwriting joy, and with that, it points the way to some very exciting things from this Dublin trio.

 

Author: Will Howard