Album Reviews-E

The Embrooks-Our New Day

The problem whith most groups around today is that no matter how hard they try, no matter how loud they play, no matter how hard they scream, almost none of them can match the pure, glorious frenzy of mid-sixties Who, Small Faces, and Creation or the raunchy sleaze of the American garage bands. The great exception to this rule is the Embrooks, and their second album, Our New Day. With its conciously retro sound, this may be a guilty pleasure for some. But the band does it with such conviction that they pull the stunt off.

The band sounds like a shotgun marrige of The Creation and The Dave Clark Five. The drummer, Lois, is exceptional, like Keith Moon on the verge of total collapse. The record is a glorious refining of the Shel Talmy sound. Guitar, bass, and drums combine to create the most vicious punch I've ever heard.

The album opens with a ripping statement of purpose, "Standing Upside Down", which sounds like a picture of pill popping maniacs of days gone by. The two covers on the record are tighter versions of rare chestnuts, The Birds' "Say Those Magic Words" and The Motions' For Another Man. The band never fails to go for the knockout hook. Only the brain-dead won't be singing "Helen" for days. The band also isn't afraid to go for a rough pure pop jangle (For Another Man), which gives the album some time to breathe.

Nope, no ballads on this one. Only the finest high-octane rock that money can buy. The most joyous, ripping album I've heard since the days of the Buzzcocks, the Embrooks definately are a band to watch.

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