WHAT'S THE TIME - Los Hories (Off the Hip)
Not from South America but a bunch of garage gringos in sheep's clothing from New Zealand. Leaving aside the geography, if you like your music living in the same stylistic neighbourhood as as The Flakes, The Pink Fits or Los Chicos, this is the band for you.There is no subtlety here but then it's not required. A pounding backbeat is laid down with brute force while big booming bass and throaty guitar blast out a pulsing roar. Singer Daron Aaron Lost does a credible number behind the mic without attracting the Idol talent scouts. Just as we like it.
Some local antecedents (Grande Cobra and The Blunt) point to these guys being old hands at this game. Auckland can be a tough town but I think they'd know how to handle themselves on the mean streets. They'd look really out of place at any of the yuppy nightspots that line Viaduct Harbour but then again so do I.
There are 11 tracks for your musical perusal, some with a soulful streak peeking through the paintwork. An exception is "Queenie" which employs an extreme fuzz edge, while "Nothing's Wrong" is pop wearing a knuckleduster. And it swings that sucker very effectively. Sing along in the remand wing. "Bleed For You" uses cleaner tones and a new wave riff but if it's lighter in touch it's only by degrees. There's that soulful streak inthe chorus.
Brevity is an underrated art form and most of these selections clock in around the 3min mark. Ideal if you have ADHD.
Producer Boss Christ (apparently a one-man country music explosion in his own right) laid this onto tape in an abandoned Scottish marching band hall it's said, over four days in March. That's Budget Rock, Kiwi-style, and its sound matches the playing i.e. vibrantly lo-fi. That was a compliment.
I've long had the feeling that New Zealand was keeping some dark secrets (other than Prime Minister Helen Clark) and this album vindicates that view. Let's hope it opens the gates. I think I like their bands better than their rugby union team. Or their DB Bitter.
The band's already done one hit-and-run trip to Australia and are cranking up for a higher profile sweep through in September '08 when they'll play more gigs with like-minded bands like the aforementioned Pink Fits. - The Barman
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