type: albumreleased: 13th september 2010
label: sub pop
genre: indie rock, noise pop, indie pop
Hesitant to embark on a 'comeback' tour on the strength of just one album, The Vaselines give us their first in twenty one years. With not a song under two minutes on the thing, it's quite a departure from the charged twee pop of the early days, but as the title indicates it's very much the same band who gave us the likes of Sex Sux (Amen) and Monsterpussy.
The sound is much bigger and sharper now. The guitar has more of a kick, and the drums are meatier. It's stylistically a different group, and while it still has Eugene Kelly and Frances McKee at its core (both are visible on the sensuous and questionable cover), James Seenan and Kelly's brother Charlie have left and been replaced by Bobby Kildea and Michael McGaughrin respectively, with Stevie Jackson adding to the guitar sound. The rare forays into disco-pop are also now gone.
One thing that hasn't changed, however, is the sense of humour. The lyrics are impossible to ignore, and constantly entertain with charm and sardonic wit. I Hate The '80s is damning and funny, and it has a youthful bite that might not be expected from a duo now in their mid forties. There's something about hearing the 80s – the year the band formed – described as shit that's genuinely refreshing, and to be told that it wasn't all Duran Duran is certainly reassuring, though perhaps that isn't quite the desired effect. Having said that, they do need to be careful not to be seen to be writing their former selves out of musical history.
Though this is a mature-sounding album, the immediacy of the songs shines through, no more than in the opening seconds of Mouth to Mouth where Kelly begs "kiss me, I'm in season". The tongue-twisting chorus doesn't disappoint either. For the most part, it's the lyrics and vocals that are the real focus on this record, lest they attempt to recreate twee aesthetics that would sound affected and out of place two decades down the line. Luckily, the character of the songwriting stands out among the sometimes bland instruments which often serve only as backing tracks.
While titles like Sex With an X and My God's Bigger Than Your God prove that the band still has the ability to be silly and playful, it's moments like the shared vocals on Poison Pen and Exit the Vaselines that are moving, and which really justify the release of something new. These are songs that carry real weight and offer a great counterpoint to their previous work instead of simply trying to repeat its success. Sex With an X may not be as chaotic or exciting as their EPs or Dum-Dum, but it doesn't need to be for it to be worthwhile, and nor does it need the title to spice it up.
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