Thursday, December 8, 2011

Viva Brother: Famous First Words

The last album I reviewed was Radiohead's very highly regarded OK Computer. I would like very much for every album I review to be a masterwork of that order. It would be nice if every album was as affecting as most people (including myself) find that one. But of course, not everything is on the same level, and so as music critics we have to face the facts that you're going to get a lot more Viva Brothers than Radioheads.

So what is Viva Brother? A very clear throwback to Britpop. It's very un-selfconscious about it, too, dropping away the meaning and depth (or appearance of meaning and depth) and seriousness of Oasis and Blur. That sorta-familiar sound is cleansed of mannerisms unique to either band and boiled down to hooks and rhythms, a twangy accent and some clever lyrics rather than soul-searching or socially-critical ones. There's a lot of soaring choruses and refrains, handclaps and backing vocals, chants, "oooh", "ohs" and "ows," that sort of thing.

It may not be terrifically revolutionary, but it's certainly fun, light-hearted and catchy. This is music that will put a spring in your step, and never drags. The 34-minute running time is just about enough time to enjoy hearing the same song in 11 variations. It's really visceral, and you get the feeling that it was really fun for these guys to work out their riffs and hooks. There's a lot of spirit here. I bet the crowd at a Viva Brother show has more fun than a lot of bands.

Here, they're not aiming for high art. They want to bring a strong, kinetic energy to their record, and they do. It's damned consistent, none of the tracks stands out as better than the others (although the closer, "Time Machine" might boast the best chorus, and "Darling Buds of May" may be the very most fun,) and none of them sounds worse. If you hear one song by them, you can imagine whether you'd like a whole album of it. And that decision will probably say a fair bit about you as a listener and what you expect out of music. Admittedly, it'll be more for the younger set, who haven't had their fill of fun, active power pop yet, and need a reason to move around. It's also perfectly acceptable not to like the album, for those of us who've already had their Britpop, as well as their Weezer, their Sloan, their Arctic Monkeys, or even more recent (and yeah, probably better) acts like Locksley and Hollerado. But still, it's in fused with enthusiasm and excitement, and there's not a moment on this album that doesn't hit the spot for me.

Buy this album now: iTunes // Amazon.com // Amazon.ca



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