WORLD’S END PRESS – FAITHFUL

We’re about due for a late-80’s revival. The great mirror-ball of fashion turns slowly, but it turns. And so we come to the four-on-the-floor, glow-stick machinations of World’s End Press, who, on their new Faithful EP, party like it’s 1989. The Melbourne four-piece are building a reputation as a sweaty, energetic live act who can get punters up and dancing, and I’m sure these tracks work in that context. But what about as a pure listening experience? Glossy, sleek, with big choruses and long breakdowns, the songs exhibit craft, musicianship, and a real sense of tension and release.  Still, something’s amiss. The band might aspire to the dance-floor swagger of the Happy Mondays and Primal Scream, but they lack a similar sense of menace, or edge, or originality. Hot Chip manage to do this kind of thing with a bit more heart. Still, WEP have fantastic assets in John Parkinson – his vocals slide and swoop effortlessly – and Sashi Dharann, whose nimble-fingered bass-playing lends groove and colour. The band’s debut album is out in early 2011.
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