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FORUM DISCUSSIONS
THEE ATTACKS - THAT'S MISTER ATTACK TO YOU  Thee Attacks"That's Mister Attack To You" Crunchy Frog (n/a) File under Modern Sounds For further details and full tracklisting click here The Danish garage band's That's Mister Attack To You album reviewed. It's hard work trawling through new bands for this site. All too often it's tired old powerpop, thrill-free indie or a mess of Small Faces and Kink covers. But the rare gem that does come through does make it all worthwhile. Like The Attacks.
We first featured the Danish four-piece at the start of 2008, ridiculously fresh-faced, but already able to knock out a thumping garage-style riff straight from its golden age. Well, just over two years later, there's an album called 'That's Mister Attack To You' - and it doesn't disappoint. Produced by Liam Watson at Toe Rag Studios, it boasts an authentic 60s-style sound and 12 songs that benefit from an air of slight familiarity from first play. Why? Well, these guys have obviously done their homework from 'back in the day', taking inspiration from the lands of Nuggets and British R&B for the all-original compositions on offer here. If you're already a fan of the noisier end of 60s beat, you'll love this. But if you've not been sold on the originals, Thee Attacks are unlikely to make you a new convert. Luckily for Thee Attacks, I'm quite partial to The Kinks and The Sonics, which means tracks like 'Won't Break Me' and 'Rip My Heart Out' respectively are right up my street. You'll also hear the spirit of Ray and Dave Davies on 'Le Freak' (I'm thinking 'I Need You'), not to mention the odd Townshend-style thrash ('It's Alright') and possibly some Yardbirds influence on closing tune 'Are You?'. But don't let that fool you into thinking this is some kind of 60s pastiche - this is all about Thee Attacks taking note of the past, then doing their own thing in 2010. On the downside, the album does like a standout track, although Love In Disguise' with its rasping guitar and jungle beat drums isn't far off a 'calling card' tune. But on the plus side, there isn't really a duff track on here (although slowie 'Love In The City' struggles to get heard amongst the noise around it). However, the real standout thing about the whole album is the maturity of it all. Close your eyes and this really could one of the better nights at the Marquee 40+ years back - thanks to the superb production job as much as the band in all honesty. More than that, the playing and in particular the soulful vocals of 'Jimmy Attack' have much more maturity that you'd expect from a group of lads aged around 20 out of Denmark. If someone told me it was a wind-up, I wouldn't be surprised. It isn't. 'That's Mister Attack To You' is actually a very impressive debut album, packed with energy and all the right reference points. If the mod scene has live bands like this to keep it going in the next few years, the future is very bright. An album well worth seeking out when it lands in the coming weeks. The album will be issued on CD, download and 180g vinyl in gatefold sleeve. To find out more, visit the Crunchy Frog website. |
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