Endless Summer,
The TravoltasMy word, if this little record isn’t fun with a capital F! Despite the torrential rain and almost sub zero temperatures associated with this time of the year, The Travoltas have gone and released the ultimate summer sound track! OK, so it’s a good three months late (If you can call July and August summer anyway …) but that’s beside the point. Imagine The Beach Boys drinking Pina Coladas with The Ramones on the balcony of Weezer’s beachside condo … or something to that effect!
Beautiful falsetto vocals, big chunky riffs, mindless but undeniably fun lyrics about girls, gigs and getting drunk and even a keyboard are present on ‘Endless Summer’. Well, to be honest, what more could you ask for? A slow fifties style number about a dejected girlfriend stabbing her cheating boyfriend? You’ve got it! An ode to the gorgeous Liv Tyler? Yes, it’s in here.
Kicking off with the most rocking of the 10 tracks on offer, ‘One For The Road’ is a belting number dealing with the trials and tribulations of life on tour. Not something many of us can empathise with, but a fantastic song none the less. Unfortunately for all you Liv Tyler fans out there, the imaginatively titled ‘Liv Tyler’ is a notch too far on the sickly sweet pop rock scale. Luckily, all is forgiven by the time ‘Let’s Go Away’ kicks in. You’ll think Allister suddenly developed some musical talent and started covering Beach Boys songs. Anyone who refrains from shaking their head from side to side during the chorus is a much stronger man than I, the melody is that infectious.
This trend continues throughout the full length of the CD. ‘Norwegian Girl’ is a blast of 50’s styled pop punk coupled with an almost eerie keyboard refrain, the title track is a pounding summer anthem with the most blissfully simplistic lyrics I’ve heard in a long time and the Travoltas old friend Randy makes an appearance on the care free sing a long ‘Goodbye Randy’. While emulating the Ramones’ 50’s pop sensibilities without trying to sound exactly like them (The Queers, take note) and with the most melodic vocals in the Netherlands, the Travoltas deserve to be very, very big.
The highlight of the record for me, however, is the trio of ‘You and Me’, a lovelorn story of a relationship destroyed by the rigours of touring with a fantastic chorus, the cutting guitars and driving melody of ‘I’m Sorry’ and the album closer ‘Anywhere You Want To’. While bands such as New Found Glory and Brodie sing about exactly the same subject matter and the 50’s pop influence is very prominent, nobody does this with as much charm as The Travoltas. The falsetto vocals are perfectly sung and match the music perfectly, while the keyboards avoid being too cheesy and compliment the thick guitar sound wonderfully.
In short, this is the most fun filled album I’ve heard all year, if not ever. Only matched by the Travoltas previous efforts, if you were having a summer party on the beach, this would be the soundtrack. Melody 99% of todays bands would kill for, this is surf punk at its pinnacle. Consistently enjoyable from start to finish, and even though you won’t be listening to this constantly, repeated listens will be sure to provide the ultimate pick me up.
Ross
