Latest Album Reviews

ALBUM OF THE WEEK

WHEN THE STORMS WOULD COME

HOLY HOLY

[WONDERLICK /SONY]

* * *

Radiohead. Mumford and Sons. Never the twain shall meet … until now, startled reader!

This is the debut album for the Melbourne and Brisbane duo HOLY HOLY (they heart caps lock) — Tim Carroll and Oscar Dawson — and it makes plenty of sense to have the diligent two finding some common ground between Oxford and London. They bow down to the bare bones of each song while keeping arty, edgy touches in there for those who like swaying with headphones.

Geographically, halfway between Brisbane and Melbourne is Sydney and this record can come unstuck with the aloof pomp of Sin City.

Sentimental and Monday is festival fodder for sunsets and goon bags, half-pace folk that is on high rotation on Triple J.

Everything is going along nicely — a little toooo nicely — until track four History. The two get a bee in their bonnet; they’re peeved with their lot as Carroll pleads, “All I want is to hold a little piece of history between my teeth,” and WA-HEY, HOLY HOLY finally find their own sound: trepidation, furtive glances and drama.

Still, HOLY HOLY better be careful they don’t take a wrong turn at TwangBurg and end up in Vestville sounding like Bumfart and Sons.

We all know that no good can come from snapping your banjo string.

When they’re fully engaged, they go at songs like Arcade Fire, 120 per cent committed. The mise en scene is riddled with keyboards, meaningful pauses and spurting fountains — in Wanderer augmented by an eyes-closed “do do, do do doo”. It’s naked and real.

Album number two should follow the pensive blueprint of song four, then they’ll make a little history, a’baby. / MIKEY CAHILL

SOUNDS LIKE: bros taking campfire songs to world

IN A WORD: backwoods

EGO DEATH

THE INTERNET

[SONY]

* * * *

The Internet — Odd Future’s satellite alt-R&B group, fronted by singer/producer/LGBT icon Sydney Bennett — are already on to their third album. They’ve now perfected complex neo-soul — travelling through hip-hop, deep house and space-prog. The Internet’s cult crossover status is highlighted by the guests on these songs — Syd, who blends Erykah Badu’s jazzy inflections with Meshell Ndegeocello’s funk swagger, is joined by Janelle Monae on the future garage Gabby. Yet the wry Get Away, with “keeping it real” lyrics, reveals that some things haven’t changed — Syd still lives at home. Most beguiling? The late-night Girl, a collab with Haitian-Canadian post-houser Kaytranada. / CYCLONE WEHNER

SOUNDS LIKE: a special affair

IN A WORD: consummate

DREAMS WORTH MORE THAN MONEY

MEEK MILL

[WARNER]

* * * 1/2

Kanye West has endorsed Meek Mill’s second album, a US chart-topper, on Twitter. The Philly hood rapper is now a household name — long after lending his cred to a forgotten Mariah Carey single. DWMTM is boosted by guest spots on two hip-pop love jams by girlfriend Nicki Minaj — one, Bad For You, subliminally borrowing from Flight Facilities’ Heart Attack. But this 2Pac admirer really brings it on the overground cuts. He outrageously transforms Mozart’s Lacrimosa (from the Requiem Mass) into the trap opus Lord Knows, lamenting career-disrupting jail time. The usually braggy MC meditates on the Faustian nature of fame on Cold Hearted alongside a worldly Diddy. / CYCLONE WEHNER

SOUNDS LIKE: Mill on the Floss

IN A WORD: triumphal

NODE

NORTHLANE

[UNFD]

* *

I’m happy for Northlane. This album is going to chart HIGH and wide, they have a great team behind them, a strong look and a hard-metal-rock sound that is resonating with a bunch of teens who will hate the rest of this review. New frontman Marcus Bridge seizes the torch from Adrian Fitipaldes on Soma, amid a shark-frenzy of riffs, and growls: “I refuse to die herrrre.” First single Obelisk tears its hair out at what humans are doing to this beautiful world, the chorus works better than the verses, too much shout over substance. That’s what Northlane do though … and if you want complaint rock for Web 3.0 then step right this way. Ohm mines more emotional territory with a jagged rhythm section. / MIKEY CAHILL

SOUNDS LIKE: parents just don’t understand

IN A WORD: pulverising

SHE’D NEED A HEART

BEN MASON

[INDEPENDENT/MGM]

* * * *

Like Gaslight Radio, TTT and Snout before them, The Smallgoods were underrated. Lead singer and now solo artist Ben Mason has stayed the course

and maintained a good texting relationship with musicians he met on the road. On his third album Mason gets everyone from Portland (apart from Carrie Brownstein and Fred Armisen) to add to his sound and vision. We’re talking Death Cab For Cutie, The Decemberists and M Ward pedigree. He gives us ‘60s orchestral pop, torrential rain ditties, green thumb horn jams and odes to scarecrows and broads. Suburban Cowboy keeps “ahead of trends” by ploughing his own furrow and I’d Bring You Sunshine has some crack string playing. This is rich soil. / MC

SOUNDS LIKE: four seasons in one dame

IN A WORD: flutey

Follow the fearless two on twitter: @joeylightbulb and @therealcyclone

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