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| HOWL HOWL GAFF GAFF - SHOUT OUT LOUDS |
| For a band that has existed for a mere four years, and a Scandinavian one at that, it hasn�t taken long for North America to perk up its ears and pay attention (David Letterman even had them on his show in June). They have a simple, child-like philosophy to life akin to that of Nike � if you want to do something, just do it. And so they did. These long-time friends formed a band and recorded music because they could see no reason for not doing it. You�ve got to admire an attitude like that. This simplicity in the thinking process is carried forward in the songwriting, much the same as evidenced by �The� bands like The Kinks, The Romantics, The Monks, The Watchmen, and even The Ramones. Throw in some kick-ass drums (by Eric and guest player Stellan) and bass (by Ted) a la 54-40, Dave Clark Five or The Beatles, sprinkle it with incidental but pleasantly memorable melodies and you�ve got a formula for instant commercial success. The guitar work by Carl and Adam is crisply precise and never strays off into realms of self-indulgence. While most of the songs could be described as bouncy garage rock with quizzical lyrics, the standouts for me were �Go Sadness� (a symphony of skeletal proportions), the anthemic grunge of �There�s Nothing� and �Seagull�. The latter, comprised entirely of a four, well, actually three-line stanza, encapsulizes the psychological paradoxes in the relationship-based lyrics, i.e. ��I came across a friend I didn�t trust, I kissed his feet�and broke his knees. He then qualifies that with �I looked into his eyes and I saw myself�. One thing I thought was weird was that �Hurry Up Let�s Go� seems to be a near-identical musical template for the following song, �Shut Your Eyes�. If they had been placed elsewhere on the CD, away from each other, I might not have even noticed the self-plagiarism. The emotional confusion and pain contained in the lyrics is expressed in a hyperactive stream of energy closely resembling punk-rock, but the higher-pitched vocals of lead singer Adam (offset by the unusually lower tone of female keyboard, Bebban) give it the �80s new wave sound, and, at times, �glam� sensibility. It�s only a matter of time before they invade Canada with their infectious brand of high-energy angst. It�s a refreshing change from the ubiquitous, profanity-filled whiners and howlers. |