BIG WOW?
Correct. St. Helens surrealists THE LOUNGS have come up trumps once again with their second full length offering.
Self-depreceating surrealism delivered with that trademark odd sense of humour = indie pop as heard at it's finest.
And for the record, I for one don't think there's a trace of sarcasm in the title either.
Recorded almost immediately after their debut hit the shelves, this long-awaited and much-anticipated follow up to their much acclaimed 2007 debut album 'We Are The Champ' crucially retains the same harmonic beauty and uncanny knack of bending and blending genres and influences within exactly the same unique and irreverent sound.
Volatile is not the word. BIG WOW has an exploding tracklist and the sheer pace is frenetic, whilst co-existing forces ensure almost simultaneously that the music ebbs and flows like the tide.
Subtle shifts in gear do their utmost to placate an incomprehensible sound that just demands to be heard. What's more, the record comes with a free emotional rollercoaster ride for everyone who gives it their full attention.
'Comet Girl' and 'Annie Hall', together with the match-striking, alarm bending mindlessness of the ode to 'Jack Sarfatti' are dual-purposeful, also serving as head-ripping shrines to the spirit of rock n roll, whilst the vocoded eccenricity and minimalist ethical code of 'Yer Blooze' hits you like the interlude as surrealism takes the reins.
Elsewhere, 'Mind Yer Head' is a title that serves as a genuine warning, rather than an ode to the language of health and safety at work procedures - and should be taken as such.
Then right on cue, 'Honesty Box' comes chiming in with all the fanfare-filled subtlety of a fisher-price activity centre to
claim it's rightful place at the centre of the action. Honesty being one of the central themes (emotional sincerity might
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even be a part of group policy), this all helps to gives the highly-strung dramatic chaos a sense of perspective.
From baseball bats called Gretyl(see epic finale) to the far-flung corners of our solar system, it's likely that you'll suffer in confusion if you stop and think, but even if you miss(or blatantly try to ignore)the point, BIG WOW won't crumble however rigorously you analyse it. In fact, it perversely seems to shine all the more.
If the pigeon-holers aren't already cringeing in small-scale horror at such an untidy refusal to comply with the relevant ticked boxes, the Style Police can forget it. ANY ATTEMPT to cross-examine such a seasoned display of uninhibited self-belief is clearly futile.
Yes, there's all of this and more, as the soul-skipping stomp of 'Sunbeat' urges me to stay put and let my mind go wandering off on it's own. I can only nod sagely at yet another snippet of sound advice for this modern world when the context is so euphonious.
THE LOUNGS might well be fashionistic descendants of the Bonzo Dog Doo Dah-s et. al., what with their visors and what-not. And yes, OK, their treble guitar assault might be a bit high-stimulus and cartoon-like for the lo-fi brigade and their ambient cardigan culture to find real enjoyment, but I could only stand back and admire the band's uncanny rock n' roll reworkings.
And the lesson learned? Don't try to understand, just give it your love. There's no confidence trick or sleight of hand here in BIG WOWland, only 80% proof triple distilled magic!
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