Montreal Magic

Its not often that I get excited about new music coming out of Canada (Neil Young excepted), but this week I had the pleasure of reviewing a release by a six-piece from Montreal called The Dears. As with previous postings about music the review for The Otago Daily Times has been pasted below. I enjoyed this album immensly as I'm sure my review spells out:

Canada’s latest music revelation The Dears, are somewhat unfairly pigeonholed as an indie band. While this may not be such a bad thing in certain circles, the moniker really does their sound an injustice. Gang of Losers deserves so much more than any simple genre classification.

Fronted by the extraordinary Murray Lightburn on lead vocals, this six piece from Montreal have a real knack for nailing the nuance of instantly memorable pop/rock hooks. The album sounds really familiar, but not in a way that it is instantly apparent. Lightburn does have an uncanny tendency to mimic the best moments of quintessential British lads Damon Albarn and Paul Weller. However, this is not blatant plagiarism, just good fortune.

Incredibly dark lyrical themes are embellished with brutal guitar raking, subtle keyboard washes, and ethereal three part harmonies. Just as every other sensitive artist seems to be commenting on the state of the world at the moment, The Dears are no different. Sure, it would be nice to have rock bands singing about their crotches once again, all this global conspiracy stuff can get a bit heavy. Thankfully, for those so inclined, the lyrics are on the enclosed booklet. Leave meaning at the door and let Lightburn mould the words into great shapes to fit the uplifting beats. When he searches for the upper registers of his vocal capability, the resulting melodies are quite hypnotic.

Fear made the world go ‘round is not only the standout, but also quite simply one of the single best tracks I have heard all year. Whites Only Party is a trippy little ditty that is somewhat poignant as the black Lightburn sings whimsically, “Don’t say I’m paranoid, it’s more like just annoyed, maybe a bit destroyed”. If there is any justice left in Lightburn’s bleak worldview, then this Gang of Losers deserves to be heard by a large audience. And if that isn’t a blatant plug, then the Australian/New Zealand version of Gang of Losers features a couple of exclusive extra tracks.

Rating: 4.5 stars.

On the catwalk yeah!

In keeping with this midlife crisis that I am going through (buying a motorbike, growing a moustache, and going back to school to be a filmmaker), today I embraced randomness and went totally outside my comfort zone. I guess part of it was due to the fact that I was encouraged by my lovely partner Tracy and I thank her for that, but can you imagine me modeling clothes on the catwalk, come on..
Yes, I queued for well over an hour to be given the once over by a panel of fashionistas who would decide whether I had the goods to grace the catwalk at next years ID Fashion show in Dunedin. It was a really bizarre experience and I'm glad I did it. I figured I might be able to corner the market for geezers with long read curly hair and to be sure I didn't spot any others at the audition, though I seriously doubt that my phone will ring next week with a job offer.
Speaking of geezers with long red hair and models, I happened to catch the classic album series on C4 this week featuring the huge 90s album Stars by Simply Red. Now, I don't own any of their records and I'm not a fan but I have to admit, that Mick Hucknell has a great voice and what's more, a great track record with models. I have unfairly been ridiculed for years based on some supposed similarity in appearance that I have to Mr Hucknell. Yes, I have capitalised on it from time to time and was stalked by a member of the Simply Red fan club but that is another story. I was dismayed to see what he looks like now, gee all that good living eh! Still, even though I'm a bit disparaging, I have to admit, some of the tracks on Stars are great and really took me back to life in London in the early 90s where that radio was saturated with my Mick's dulcet tones.

Do I really look like Mick? Come on!

Spam Film Ideas

While racking my brain recently for potential film ideas I stumbled upon an email that got me thinking. After years of receiving spam with offers of free laptops, cheap mortgages, a bigger penis and unexpected news of many relatives that I never new existed working in government departments in Nigeria, who had all recently perished in bizarre accidents, I received the following:

Dear Friend,
I am Captain Brian James of the US Marine Force on
Monitoring and Peace keeping mission in Baghdad-Iraq.
On the7thh day of July 2006, we were alerted on the
sudden presence of some Terrorists camping in a suburb
not too far from Karbala here in Iraq. After Immediate
intervention, we captured three (3) of the Terrorists,
twenty-six (26) were killed leaving seven (7) injured.

In the process of torture they confessed being
rebels for  late Ayman al-Zawahiri  and  took us to a
cave in Karbala which served as their camp. Here we
recovered several guns, bombs and other Ammunitions
including some boxes among which two contains nuclear
weapons, one filled  with hard drugs(cocaine) and the
other four to my amazement contain some US Dollars
amounting to $7.2M after I and two of my junior
intelligent officers counted them. I however
instructed them to keep this in high secrecy.

I am in keen need of a Reliable and Trustworthy
person like you who would receive,  secure and protect
these boxes  containing the US Dollars for me up on
till my assignment elapses in here in Iraq. I assure
and promise to give you 30% of this fund, however feel
free to negotiate what you wish to have as your
percentage in this business..

Please assure me of your keeping this topmost secret
to protect my job with the US Monitoring and
Peace-Keeping mission. Contact me through my personal
email capt_brianjames7@sify.com

Sincere regards,
Capt.Brian James.

Wow I thought, I'm in contact in Iraq with someone in the military. Not only does this email read like a John Woo script, but this guy has searched out little old me here in Dunedin as his confidant. Gee, my blog must be good! I wonder how much for the film rights?

Now, with my curiosity significantly raised, I'm afraid to say that I started to smell a rat. Hey, this guys email account is with some organisation called 'sify'. Could it be possible that this should read 'sifty'.
Good to see that our friends in the spamming world are getting inventive and generating some quite amusing creative writing.

Frank Zappa Genius

Zappa on Crossfire - 1986

For anyone not familiar with the genius of the late great Frank Zappa then please watch the very amusing video clip below. Slightly outdated sure, but for anyone who remembers the debate concerning censorship of music in the 1980s this was serious stuff. Just cause Al Gore is doing the rounds with a nice little film about environmental issues that doesn't excuse him for marrying Tipper and being associated with her insane ranting that is politically recognised as the PMRC.
In homage to his art, I have even decided to grow the Zappa moustache for Movember, but I'm unsure that my follically challenged face will play the game.

Sixty Years-The Music Video

One of the assignments that seems to be creating quite a few column inches in my classmates blogs is the music video that we are all working on. When signing up for this course, I was really excited about the opportunity to be creative with a song of our choice. Given the thousands of songs that I could have deliberated over, I chose to keep things simple by focusing on one of my first musical loves, Rockabilly. The choice then was relatively straightforward as I selected Brian Setzer as my artist. A long time fan of The Stray Cats and Brian's various solo projects I tuned into his 2003 solo release Nitro Burnin' Funny Daddy.

The cover for Nitro Burnin Funny Daddy

The opening track Sixty Years is an absolute rock n roll tour de force. With an infectious drum beat and classic Setzer riffs, the song lent itself perfectly to the visuals that had been forming in my head. What's more, after studying the lyrical content I was able to refine my sequences accordingly. While, the song is liable to get you a speeding ticket and is incredibly upbeat, Setzer wrote it to say goodbye to his good friend the legendry Joe Strummer of The Clash who passed away in 2002.

Brian posing with one of his many Gretsches.

As Brian sings on the track: "Saint Peter didn't put you here/ For no reason at all/ So when it time to go/ Oh brother stand tall"

This is the most personal album I've ever done,Setzer has confessed. Lyrically, I go into areas I've never touched before,relationships, spirituality. I just wanted to let my whole life out, more than just the hot-rod rockabilly side."

For anyone not familiar with this genre of music and is curious to hear what the track sounds like click on the following link for Sixty Years. I'll post some visuals from the music video once I have it ready to go.

Emersons Triumph Again

Two weeks late I know, but the recent Brew NZ awards in Wellington confirmed what many in the South have known for quite sometime, that Emersons is a damn fine drop. All 12 Beers entered won awards and three beers were awarded the coveted status of 'Best in Class'. What a haul, major brewer Lion Nathan with its stable of four brands only won 14 trophies and the news was even worse for the other giant DB with just nine awards. Once again, taste came to the fore with two other boutique brewers (Limberg and Epic) also doing well. Thankfully, Emersons have very kindly put some of their festival beers on tap in a couple of Dunedin Bars. I am anxiously anticipating the fantastically named Pandora's Bock, the Anniversary IPA and brewer Shaun Ancell's tribute to his late father, the Ancellator.

Perhaps the genius of Richard Emerson is not only his super-sensory taste buds! It seems that Scottish scientists have put forward the notion in a recent study that geniuses are less likely to suffer from Hangovers! Or, could it be that people with higher IQs realise that its not always wise to binge drink? I know for a fact that one of my very intelligent colleagues (Sarah) does not suffer hangovers. However, that's probably due to the fact that she is teetotal, imagine that, an Irish girl who doesn't drink!

Post Script: I have just heard that the chairman on Young's Brewery in London. Mr John Young C.B.E has passed away aged 85. I have long had a soft spot in my soul for Youngs after discovering their product working in a West End Pub in the early 90s. The publican of the Ponterfract Castle was a real ale enthusiast and insisted that the staff drink Young's Special with him. I took a real liking to it, and progressed from there onto many of the other fine Young's products. Fortunately working in North West London for a couple of years I had to pass the great Young's establishment the Grand Junction Arms every day on my way to and from work. Situated on the Grand Union canal many summers were spent savoring the chocolate stout next in the beer garden next to the canal.

Politics and Filmmaking

Now I know that this blog is ostensibly about the filmmaking process, but events in the political life of New Zealand have really taken my interest recently. The bitter mud-slinging taking place between the two major political parties is farcical and both of them look silly, nothing too strange there. However, the entry into the fray of 'super sleuth' Ian Wishart from Investigate magazine really has me wondering about the journalistic focus in this country. Thankfully, Mr Wishart was taken to task in fantastic style by Sean Plunket who showed him up for the weasel that he is. Indeed, as one political commentator (whose name escapes me) was heard to say:
"If Ian Wishart told me the sun was shining I would go to the window to check it out. Even then if I discovered that it was indeed shining I would assume that Mr Wishart had rigged it!"
Who cares if our Prime Minister doesn't have children and has a partner that is a bit odd? Even if Peter Davis is unsure about his sexual orientation, who really cares? Well, it seems the Exclusive Brethren do and they are really scary. For a religious group determined to ostracise themselves from society as we know it, they really have taken to politics with a great deal of fervor recently. What's worse, they are anti just about everything I hold sacred! They are anti-environment, pro the Present USA regime, anti-cinema and media, anti-computers, homophobic and the list goes on. So, its scares me that they seem to have a political voice in the form of the National Party.

Tag Teams have been decided

One of the major hurdles of this film course is the knowledge that we won't have sole creative control over our films, we will need to work in pairs. Well, this issue has been sorted and I am pleased to announce that my partner in creative crime will be Pip Walls. All the way from
Hawera (Taranki), Pip shares with me a love of character driven documentaries. Both of us have media focused training/education so I wouldn't expect at this stage that we'll end up churning out a hard science flick. A cursory read of Pip's Blog will give you an idea of some of the ideas that we will be throwing around over the next week. Film ideas are still being subjected to the pitching process so no ideas have been given the green light yet. We need to have an executive producer assigned to our project first.

* Pip on the left with Lesley during a research trip to Macraes Flat.

Trouser Shakedown

Today, a collegue of mine very kindly emailed me a URL that I simply had to share. As a long time fan of Spinal Tap I had often wondered what would happen in a modern airport with paranoid security measures, if Derek Smalls had attempted to smuggle a large cucumber down his trousers. It seems I am not alone in my curiosity, but there is no way I could possibly have imagined that it would create the sort of comedy that John Hargrave writes about. This is genius with a capital 'G' and deserves to be read, re-read and emailed to others. Thanks Alistair for bringing this to my attention.

All Hail the Troll- Lukas wins Rockstar

Supernova did what I expected them to so and named a midget Canadian as their lead singer. What a slap in the face to all the girls. If this reality concept is going to keep people interested they will have to stop ignoring the untold talents of the females that apply and give one of them a go. Chicks can rock and Dilana is amazing, it is unfortunate that fans were probably put off by her naive comments to the press about her fellow contestants.

Last night both her and Magni outperformed the others. Magni's rendition of the Hendrix classic 'Fire' was my favourite moment, he really looked the part with a Les Paul slung around his neck completely monstering the track. Magni's biggest fault was having a wife and child, very un-rockstar apparently. If only he could have hooked up with a porn-star while in L.A. and craashed an expensive car coked to the gills!

As for Toby, back to the Melbourne bar-band bro, nough said!

In the INXS show I thought Sweet Suzie was the most talented performer and Dilana was by far and away the best thing to happen to the Supernova show. In fact, if it wasn 't for Tommy Lee's bias and support of Lukas I'm sure Gilby and Jason would have preferred Dilana. Its great to think that both Gilby and Dave Navarro will have some input into her solo album. I doubt Supernova will come to much and the victory by a relatively unknown Punk Band to the rights for the name suggest troubled times ahead. I have a lot of time for Gilby Clark and he went up in my estimation last night based purely on his choice of guitar, a burgundy Firebird!!

Helldorado Album Review

Some of you may have noticed that I have put a 'listening to' post on my sidebar. The plan is to update this with really, really good albums and then follow them up with a review. In this day of itunes music store downloads, there is (i think) too much music to be consumed as every aspiring artist with a decent computer and pro-tools gets in on the act. So, if you like the review and end up purchasing the product I would really appreciate any feedback. Also, I am keen for others to recommend me music that I should check out, and this includes classic albums from years gone by. I'm always looking for extra pieces of plastic to grace my turntable.

Artist: Helldorado
Title: The Ballad of Nora Lee
Label: Glitterhouse records


Norwegian contribution to world music has often been entrenched in the slightly bizarre and comical. Famous for an ignominious brand of death metal and often-hilarious Eurovision song entries, Helldorado could be the ticket to resurrect some Scandinavian respectability. Formed in 2001 in Stavanger, Norway, this four-piece defies categorisation and excels at it. All multi-instrumentalists, the performances captured here really showcase the talents of musicians with years of live experience.

Twelve songs of loss, losers and old Lucifer himself, The Ballad of Nora Lee is the long lost soundtrack to David Lynch’s ‘Wild at Heart’. Comparisons to film scores don’t end there. Helldorado have fattened their sound on Ennio Morricone spaghetti, the regurgitated mélange reeks of refried beans and corn chips. Helldorado’s interpretation of the sounds associated with the American West and the dodgy border territory just South of the Rio Grande is infectious.

In a nutshell, The Ballad of Nora Lee eloquently rocks. It infuses the subconscious with layers of guitars (both twangy and surfed up), harmonicas, trumpets, banjo and glockenspiel. Instrumentation chimes in unison with the fantastic vocal delivery of Dag S Vagle who really captures the best elements of the American accent, and a not bad Nick Cave impersonation either.

The album is littered with standout tracks, from the opening tale of dangerous liaisons in The Ballad of Nora Lee to the slide guitar and reeds blowing down the tumbleweed-strewn alleys of Guitar Noir. There is rarely a dull moment and surprises lie around every corner. The Mariachi trumpets serenade the intoxication on A Drinking Song and Rock Your Soul kicks the spurs into overdrive, inciting a bar room brawl. Final track Waiting around to die takes the prominent theme of death to a new epoch, built upon a haunting Chris Isaac –ish vocal. Helldorado ain’t a bad place to be.

Rating: 4 stars
Reviewed By: Mark Orton

Supernova-and there were four!

Well, after tomorrow night (NZ time) I will be lost for programmes to watch to television after Rockstar Supernova has the season finale. Have you voted for your favourite on my blog yet? Sorry Toby fans, I left him off as a selection as I honestly didn't think he would make it this far. I just hope that the Lukas the Troll doesn't get the gig, way too much eyeliner dude! So, Dilana (pictured) it is and based on the strength of tonights performance I think she deserves it, if not Magni's my man. Stay tuned...

Black Holes and Revelations

Strange things are happening on this album. Speculation of New World Order conspiracy theories abound. Alien invasions, oil dependency, thievery, corruption and general disenchantment with global politics, the Muse revolution is upon us, well not quite. Lyrical content aside, the most unusual aspect of Black Holes & Revelations is the sound. The Teignmouth trio are older, tighter and have a lot more leverage with recording time. There seem to be no constraints; the only way to describe this aural assault is seamlessly schizophrenic, if that makes any sense? This album is completely bonkers, and it is all the better for it.

Opening track ‘Take a Bow’ is slightly misleading as its grandiose nature hints at the previous album ‘Absolution’. However, proceedings then take a sharp turn. Second track, ‘Starlight’ is a big ballsy disco anthem with an infectious fuzzy bass loop and dare I say handclaps, is this really Muse? Third track ‘Supermassive black hole’ sounds like Beck has been trapped in a pair of Lenny Kravitz bell-bottoms, all falsetto vocals and funky double tracked guitar. Assassin starts with a pummelling riff that is straight out of the Queens of the Stone Age songbook. All angst and aggression layered with an ethereal lilt from singer Matt Bellamy. The tub-thumping then gives way to a subtle Weezer-like groove that slowly reveals the most infectious melodic moment on the album in Exo-politics.

With recordings spread over two continents, it is the numbers completed at Electric Lady studios in New York that really get the feet tapping. There are hints of Scissor Sisters, Bowie, any number of studio 54 disco acts and the ghost of Hendrix never too far away. Yes, this is the result of three very talented musicians holed up in an alien environment with an eclectic music collection for solace.

Black Holes & Revelations is a great genre mash-up. It is also, the most accessible and enjoyable MUSE album yet.

Rating: 4 stars.

The Human Riff

Topic: The Human Riff

By now I had at least expected a couple of questions concerning the nature of my pseudonym 'humanriff', alas there have been none. However, for those curious souls that have not found a voice the term human riff is commonly used to describe none other than the mighty Keith Richards (pictured below).

A lifelong fan of The Stones, I continue to marvel at the ability of Mr Richards to cheat the Reaper and continue to hammer out those fantastic rhythms in open 'G'. However, one post on another blog caught my eye and I just have to post a link to it. Please click here and read about how one lucky soul met Keith backstage at The Stones recent Western Springs concert. I would give my right testicle for such an opportunity!

Fancy asking Keith if he had done it with a carrot?

Anyway, speaking of Kiwi ingenuity I was amazed to see that Jim Anderton was jumping on his hobby horse again to declare that all drug smoking paraphernalia will be outlawed for sale in New Zealand. Well sorry to tell you Jim, but does that mean you are going to legislate against fruit and vegetables. In case your wondering where this is going, I happened upon a really interesting article on the Hard News Blog and thought it should be linked here. Please feel free to come forward with your own ingenious tales on DIY bongs, water pipes etc.

Steve Irwin R.I.P

Date: Friday, 8 September 2006

I am a bit late with this posting but I had to pass on my thoughts about the sad ending to a very colourful life. Yes, this is a blog with a focus on making documentary films and I am learning more about capturing wildlife on camera all the time. I didn't grow up on a diet of David Attenborough (unlike many of my filmmaking colleagues). However, I did notice Steve Irwin and was always entertained by him. I admire people who push the envelope and don't sit on the fence, there are far too many mediocre people balancing there as it is. That is why I'm incensed that Germaine Greer has had the temerity to openly criticise Steve Irwin after he has no opportunity to defend himself. What would she know about animal behaviour? If I'm really cynical I suspect that Irwin's biggest fault in Greer's eyes was his unashamedly colloquial performance of 'ocker' masculinity that got up her nose. It seems that every ex-aussie based in the U.K. has a real sense of embarrassment about their homeland, just think of Clive James! Thankfully, I'm not alone in condemning Greer and her misguided comments.

In fact, where do all these so called animal rights spokespeople get off?

Sure, in the name of entertainment Steve Irwin did things on camera with animals that weren't exactly conventional. In the bigger picture he raised untold awareness for ecological issues and generated a lot of money (from his own pocket as well) that has been used to benefit animals. Enough said!

Macraes Corporate Governance Policy?

Sounds like a lot of wank doesn't it? Let me put this in context.

On Wednesday the 30th of August I was very kindly driven up to Macraes Flat to visit the Department of Conservation (DOC) headquarters and more importantly the mammal-proof enclosure. Lesley Judd from DOC was the perfect guide, so enthusiatic about her role in the Otago/Grand Skink program. I really envied her obvious excitement about finding a career that she was so interested in. I would also like to thank Shaun who is training as a DOC mammal control worker. He was quite understanding of my naievity regarding the trapping methods used for feral cats, hedgehogs, stoats, weasals and rats.

Shaun setting a trap

Fortunately the day was quite warm and we managed to locate a Grand Skink who very kindly posed for a number of photographs. The environment is extremely beautiful apart from one major scar...the Oceana Gold Macraes Mine right next door. Gee, these Skinks have an uphill battle, not only are they sitting prey for the really large feral cats roaming the area, the farmers are rapidly burning their food sources and your neighbour is a ruddy huge gold mine!

I applaud the work being conducted by DOC in this area, in particular the feral cat dog training programme. Shaun has just acquired a puppy (Keila) that will be trained to sniff out cats. It is such a valuable contribution that these dogs make, as the monsters of the tussock have such a negative impact on endangered native species. Unfortunetly, some members of the public often have trouble distinguishing the difference between feral cats and urban cats. A real emotive issue this one as cat-dog personal have been singled out for abuse by cat loving freaks. This is a shame as the feral cats being trapped bear scant similarities with domestic cats. How many domestic moggies weigh 7-10kgs and can travel 150 kilometers in a 7 day period? Just to highlight this issue, my collegue Kat Baulu very kindly posted a couple of good links to my blog, they make interesting reading:

http://www.johnkinsella.org/essays/scapegoats.html
http://www.feralcat.com/action.html

Lesley with Keila

While the visit was incredibly productive in allowing me to visualise the scenery and look at possible angles for a shooting script on skinks, I was really taken with an art installation on the road to the skink enclosure. It seems that Oceana Gold in an attempt to uphold some form of corporate good behaviour have gifted the landscape a billboard installation and have called it an art-park? Hey, I liked some of the images on the billboards but it really stood out like muts nuts! At a reputed $30K, I couldn't stop thinking how money could have been spent more wisely assisting the 'Real Gold' of Otago, the charming lizards. Don't get me wrong, I love art and would hate to be labelled a cultural philistine, but the art-park really did not gell with me and contrary to Oceana Gold's press statement, it does not enhance the environment. I guess a clever mock-up of the Tui Brewery billboard campaign in the nearby Stanley's Hotel summed things up for me, 'Artwork'....Yeah Right!

Art Park?

Stereophonics / Radio Birdman Reviews

The last week has been quite intense for research so unfortunately I haven't updated my blog as regularly as I would like. However, I'm still consuming new music and searching for the right words to describe it. In the next week I will review the new MUSE album 'Black holes and revelations which I'm really enjoying at the moment, so look out for that one. In the meantime, I have included two reviews submitted to the Otago Daily Times recently and will post a blog about my experience with feral cats, skinks and an art-park shortly.

The Stereophonics: Live from Dakota


After five studio albums the Stereophonics release the obligatory live album to complement the recently released DVD. Hot on the heals of the often excellent Language, Sex, Violence, Other? this double album features 20 tracks distilled from the 2005 tour. Contrary to the title ‘Live from Dakota’, each track on the album has been selected by the band as the best performance of that song from the tour.

Once upon a time, live albums allowed bands to stretch out with rambling jams that rarely reflected the studio tracks. Sometimes they were even afforded the luxury to cover obscure favourites and engage in friendly banter with the audience. This album has little of that. Instead you get all the hits sandwiched between a few lesser-known gems; a best of package sequenced for portable music devices. This is a pity, as the sound for the most part is huge. Kelly Jones’s gravely voice never misses a beat, belting melodically over the classic tone of his Gibson guitars. The rhythm section of Richard Jones and Javier Weyler are fantastically tight amounting to quite an impressive racket for just three musicians.

Crowd appreciation comes to the fore in the mix, often providing backing vocals to support Jones during the quieter moments. Yes, the Stereophonics have an extremely solid fan base and this album encapsulates the intimate relationship that the trio on stage have with the hoards in front of them. Opening track Superman is a cracker with a cutting guitar solo that will no doubt have bedroom air guitar aficionado’s jumping off their air monitors. There is a cool segue way into Motorhead’s Ace of Spades during The bartender and the thief and encore track Dakota rounds disc two off nicely.

Live from Dakota is essentially a gift from the band to their fans to commemorate the very successful 2005 tour. It is raw (just as it should be), there are no overdubs and the mistakes are intact. Existing fans will love it and to those who haven’t discovered the Stereophonics brand of rock n roll; this would be a fine introduction.

Rating: 3 stars.

Radio Birdman: Zeno Beach

Fans of Radio Birdman must have been salivating over the prospect of a new release from a band that last released an album of original material 25 years ago. A pioneer of Aussie Punk, this release by four of the original members of Radio Birdman is straightforward rock-n-roll, Sydney bar-band style. However, if you didn’t warm to their sound the first time around, then chances are Zeno Beach will not create seismic waves in 2006. Not that Zeno Beach is full of sour notes; it’s just a tad mediocre.

Rob Younger’s vocals are an acquired taste, less punk, more new-romantic. Performance wise, the remaining band including You Am I drummer Russell Hopkinson, are probably tighter than ever. But, the opening tracks are stacked full of perfunctory riffs that seem to plod along at zimmer-frame pace. This is a pity as the tracks improve as the album progresses. For instance, ‘Locked Up’ (track 11) is an absolute stormer, a Stooges inspired discordant fuzz-fest that gives away to some frantic fretwork that fully grooves. Similarly, the next track ‘The Brotherhood of Al Wazah’ is quite hypnotic with a vocal delivery borrowed from Jordan Luck. The melodic goods are delivered by way of a stripped back bass/keyboard interlude in the bridge.

Unfortunately, the opening track, ‘We’ve come so far (to be here today’; which probably carries untold sentiment for the reunited Radio Birdman, equates to nothing more than filler. Surely the euphoria of a new release should sound more uplifting? After 25 years there must have been more than a few goods songs waiting for the re-assembled Radio Birdman treatment, the evidence presented here would suggest only five.

Rating: 2.5 stars.