ahem's second album follows five years after their debut album, Try Again. Great though that debut was, Avoider feels that bit more fully formed, more focussed maybe and this allows the Minneapolis Trio to reveal exactly what they are about.
The band really fit in with the new breed of noisier looser Power Pop. in fact you might even say that they are the elders of this implosion. The basic template is up and at 'em, but the male / female vocals contrast allows great variation and provides a softer feel at times.
Although, it is a lazy comparison, there is more than a little latter day Replacements to them, but there are also hints of the Indie 80s Glasgow about them. They can also get Angular and yet they can really let rip. Followers here will also note some classic Power Pop creeping in.
Pressed Flowers is a great example of this, a sort of College Indie 90s Guitar version of the genre, yet Sunroof is more classic Power Pop, yet even sounds like something Lindsey Buckingham would come up with. Contrast this with Old Hell with its fuzzed up noise pop that gets close instrumentally to the Jesus And Mary Chain. It explodes!
The opener, Lapdog, bursts out and lets you know just how up and at 'em the trio can be, yet Lost And Found is all riff and gentle, almost 70s Pop Rock or even 80s Anthem Indie. Waterlogged even mixes both, all angular on the verse and rocked up Mats on the chorus.
Avoider is an album that says what it wants to say and then moves on. 10 songs in about 25 minutes that gets off and leaves you wanting more. There is also a banker anthem in Leap Year, which may fast become one of the songs of the year. An outstanding offering!
You can listen to and buy the album here. It is available on Vinyl or as a download.
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