Art Brut may not be musical savants, but they are undeniably a clever bunch. On the band's fifth LP, Wham! Bang! Pow! Let's Rock Out!, the London, UK quintet have finally added a sonic element to complement vocalist Eddie Argos's brilliant knack for telling a hell of a story.
After the departure of two-fifths of the band, the band added current Wedding Present drummer Charlie Layton and Graham Coxon guitarist Toby MacFarlaine, helping to give songs like the celebratory Partridge Family-esque, "Hooray" and the sweeping "Schwarzfahrer" an extra component to Argos's cockney speak-sing.
But of course, Argos delivers another batch of great lyrics, as he delivers more than just captivating stories, waxing poetic on "Your Enemies Are My Enemies too": "I'm gonna grow old like Robyn Hitchcock, my hair will be white and my shirts polka dot." As their past few LPs suffered from a bout of structural sameness, Wham! Bang! Pow! Let's Rock Out! contains just enough musical and lyrical variety to place it amongst Art Brut's finest work.
(Alcopop!)After the departure of two-fifths of the band, the band added current Wedding Present drummer Charlie Layton and Graham Coxon guitarist Toby MacFarlaine, helping to give songs like the celebratory Partridge Family-esque, "Hooray" and the sweeping "Schwarzfahrer" an extra component to Argos's cockney speak-sing.
But of course, Argos delivers another batch of great lyrics, as he delivers more than just captivating stories, waxing poetic on "Your Enemies Are My Enemies too": "I'm gonna grow old like Robyn Hitchcock, my hair will be white and my shirts polka dot." As their past few LPs suffered from a bout of structural sameness, Wham! Bang! Pow! Let's Rock Out! contains just enough musical and lyrical variety to place it amongst Art Brut's finest work.
