Your New Favourite Band [ECD] - Hives (The) > Reviews > Ok, I know they sound like a medical condition

Author's product rating:   

Originality
Lyrics
Quality and consistency of tracks
How does it compare to the artist's other releases
Value for Money

Advantages:	Fresh, new, bags of talent and energy, good, real rock
Disadvantages:	Some duff tracks, dangerous drift between skatepunk and greeb sometimes

Recommend to potential buyers:

yes

Full review

It was a Friday evening a few months ago, about 20 past 4, when I first heard the Hives. I was in the gym, and Chris Moyles was on Radio 1. I was bench-pressing, not the best position to be in if you're going to be surprised. There I was, my own body weight suspended above me, ready for some even more talentless RnB/Dance music to be played.

Suddenly, this incredibly catchy guitar line started playing. I quickly put the weights down before I did anything silly.

Bloody good job I did.

That track was the astounding Hate To Say I Told You So. Some quick research when I got home gave me the name the Hives, and so on Saturday I was in HMV having a look for their stuff. Co-incidentally (?), there was a great big display with loads of these red CD cases, proclaiming perhaps rather rashly, that the Hives were 'your new favourite band'.

Well, I stuck the CD in my stereo, and to be honest, the whole thing was a bit of an anti-climax. They sounded a little to cliched for me, although I was mildly surprised to discover that the band were in fact from Sweden, rather than from the US, which did make me look a little more favourably towards them. Anyway, I put the CD away, and went out and bought the new Strokes album, since it seemed that every time the Hives were mentioned, so were the Strokes.

Then I decided to listen again to the Hives.

Suddenly, I realised that they had grown on me. I realised that I liked this band a hell of a lot. Suddenly I got it. The Hives were the only group actually doing anything interesting with a guitar band for the first time in about 7 years, and then I realised, they're a stunning band, and they deserve your interest.

So, what made me decide this? How about a track by track explanation?

1 - Hate To Say I Told You So - astonishingly catchy, amazing guitar work, full of bounce.

2 - Main Offender - the reason I switched off last time. A little tuneless, but still some good guitar work, but some good rock nevertheless.

3 - amazing intro, thumping drums, lyrics don't make a whole lot of sense, verses are good, chorus is a little dismal.

4 - Die, All Right! - Wow. Love the drums, catchy guitar, nice lairy feel, good n' fast.

5 - Untutored Youth - possibly a 'dud' track in the same sense as Digsy's Dinner was a 'dud' by Oasis, ie. it's more of an afterthought than a song in its own right. Very, very fast, full of teen-angst rebellion.

6 - Outsmarted - slightly heavier than the rest, but still fast, love the drum beat intro.

7 - Mad Man - don't really like this, a bit too heavy for me, but some very talented guitar playing, crashing cymbals and good pace.

8 - Here We Go Again - getting back on track with this one, good, bleak sounding rock, solid stuff.

9 - a.k.a. I-D-I-O-T - Again, wow. jaw-droppingly fast, great punky track, fantastic chorus, full of controlled rage and energy

10 - Automatic Schmuck - again, loads of energy, haunting guitar background, very pacey, although with an odd aftertaste, doesn't quite feel right.

11 - Hail Hail Spit n' Drool - a nice mix of modern punk with proper rock, a real shout-it-out chorus, although there are some duff moments, and its all over too quickly.

12- The Hives are law, You are Crime - an instrumental track, chill-out for rock fans?

Overall, this is a smart collection of tracks, full of energy and blistering pace, although I think that the album really suffers as a result of the lyrics. It's quite clear that English is the second language of the singer, and possibly the writer too, since the lyrics make little sense, and there's some very odd pronounciations in parts. However, the music still holds together, and what we have here is a good 'punk' album in the pre-Skate punk sense, ie. properly done, not happy-clappy or promising suburban middle class teens some kind of pathetic rebellion. The Hives are too mature for that, and have made a good, solid rock album....or should that be albums? A quick look inside proves that this is indeed a compilation album, something I suspected from the motorway service station packaging. The Hives were drafted in to save Alan McGee's new record label, Poptones, and this album is basically a 12 track advert for the label. Still, it's a good album, and so I'll certainly be out to buy the two 'proper' albums, Veni Vid Vicious, and Barely Legal.

The Hives - your new favourite band? Could be...