TAPES'N'TAPES - The Loon

They should call it old-wave. A trend about to turn a decade old, with its forerunners now on their third album and a constant swarm of new names making their debut. Tapes'n'Tapes, a trio from Minneapolis, fall on the sunnier side of the pot: not much ambition, good ideas, a handful of songs above the norm. The formula is the usual one: pillaging riffs and rhythms from the eighties, plus, in this case, a dash (but just a hint) of the nineties (Pavement, Pixies).

The first thing to gauge in bands like this is the opening shot. This time it's "Insistor", cow-punk built on crisscrossing guitars, a well-aimed shot, melodic but slightly rough around the edges (Chris Martin with a touch of Frank Black), a catchy, quality chorus, an arrangement that pairs grace with power. A fine strike, no doubt about it. The album instead opens with "Just Drums", a rolling wave-rock number, this time with a voice somewhere between Casablancas and Meloy, little yelps, drum hits, rock for young troublemakers. "The Iliad" follows suit nicely, with flute breaths, acoustic guitars and grinning electric riffs, simplicity and sound construction at the same time.

"Manitoba", one of the album's highlights, also shows off a knack for writing ballads, xylophone notes and backing vocals, '60s melodicism, and a surprise explosive electro-rock coda. The epic "Omaha", with piano notes and jazzy brushed drums, confirms the impression. Quality tracks, in short, maybe not excellent ones, perhaps interspersed with others that don't quite hit the mark (the funky shades and bite of the fake jam "Crazy Eights"; the bright pop-rock of "Buckle"). And then there's the other opening shot, "Cowbell", more cow-punk, fury held back in the choral hook, with the guitars heating up almost to no end, until the final, shouted charge.

In short, the foundation is there, even if it only intermittently comes fully into its own. Will they grow?

Ride the wave of great music

Add OndaRock to your favorite sources on Google Discover. Don't miss our reviews, milestones and latest news straight in your feed.

Follow on Google

31/07/2006