The Bungalows offer up their third album and the four piece from Gerringong in Australia don't disappoint. There's an awful lot going on across these 15 songs, none of it sounds that Oz, it's a big big sound that changes as many directions as is possible in it's 55 minutes.
The production is very Brit Pop, but the influences sound so varied that pigeon holing is worthless. You can here Classic Rock but there also seems a ska undertone and then everything changes by an addition of a sort of Together In Electric Dreams synth.
For all the chord changes and big choruses, it's that drums and bass back beat that glues everything together, mix in unexpected Guitar solos and the keyboard interruptions enhance something that feels so singalong, as though there's a group in the studio joining in with those choruses.
A song like Davola's Funhouse is very The Strokes with more words with a Surf metal soundtrack. Crazy Ain't Clever is pure early 80's Blue Oyster Cult. We Get Along is again very Strokes like, although Marc Bolan could be the front man.
Ireland Knights could be from some late 60's Kitchen Sink Drama and yet First Bit Of Light could be one of those big Brit Pop closing Anthems. Wasteland is Goth, Roll could be INXS, perhaps the only time this album sounds Australian, with a killer riff.
There is so much here to like and the variety of songs is admirable. There's a lot of different styles and that may confuse some, but it's an album that will allow you to keep finding different favourites. In these days of people blabbing on about the end of the album and the death of the guitar, we should make them listen to Something's Going On. They'll realise they were wrong.
This album is highly recommended and can be listened to and ordered here. You can also get the band's back catalogue at Name Your Price whilst you are there.
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