1990’s – KICKS

This Glasgow outfit are really quite the proponents of sweaty-faced pop hits; their glitzy, sizzling guitar hooks and yelping oh oh oh’s echo the behaviour and sentiments of the UK’s misguided youth. This is something that is a great strength for 1990’s – somehow in all their hook-posturing and la-di-da lyrics, they make it seem very considered and confident. Tell Me When You’re Ready is a disco anthem for the unemployed love-seekers; 59 is a candy-eyed bus-ride through the world of boy-girl flirtation; and Giddy Up addresses the unwanted ex-lover haunting the young suitor, in Rolling Stones-style swaggering rock n roll. This is all pretty cute stuff, clearly reminiscent of the heyday of those infamous popsters Blur, though considerably narrower in scope; instead of exploring the darker side of manic pop culture, this is all about haircuts, girls, pills and being late for work. Potentially this formula is a lot of fun – but its longevity is pretty uncertain, and after an album’s worth of this stuff one may feel their head over-loaded with sugary guitar pop, and need to cleanse it with some Canadian hardcore, or maybe even early choral music, just to get the PH balance back on track.

**1/2