The guitar bandwagon rolls on with its latest champions potentially sneaking the crown from the hands of recent Mercury stalwarts The Arctic Monkeys. Glasgow based three piece The Fratellis have made a formidable dent in the music scene courtesy of their debut album Costello Music.
A lot of fuss has been made out these boys and lets be fair we’re living in an age where hype builds reputations a lot quicker than recorded material supports them. Thankfully in this instance the hype is justified.
Costello Music might not break the boundaries of originality but it does return to a well trodden path with some much needed vitality. The album takes a slightly formulaic approach. A good number of tracks open with restraint giving you melodious intros before the pedal gets thrown down and the band up the ante as they head into the chorus. If there is anything contrived about this its forgivable because the fact of the matter is…it all works. Three tracks in and they’ve done enough to hook you.
The odd moment here and there threatens to be a little twee (‘Whistle for The Choir’ very briefly flirts with it) but lets itself off the hook with aplomb and then of course is the bounce along ‘rag time rock’ anthem ‘Chelsea Dagger’. It’s all mined from the same vein with no obvious turkeys in attendance. By the time you get to ‘Vince The Loveable Stoner’ with its country twang and ambling gait you’ve pretty much convinced yourself what a dazzling live prospect this lot must be. Kind of takes me back to the opening shots from bands like The Coral and Gomez.
Musically this lot are tight, embracing a musical legacy that dates back to the late seventies there are distant ghosts of punk on show. However it works with a polish that stands them in good stead as already proven on the singles (‘Chelsea Dagger’ and ‘Henrietta’). A storming mix of punchy punk tinged rock and sharp acoustic flavoured numbers. Dosed with a musical deftness and a sharp lyrical touch. If you haven’t picked this one up yet it deserves to be on your prospective purchase list.
