Astedwae ittlae ejaysdae (Hats Off To The Buskers - The View)

Member Name: jac22

Product:	Hats Off To The Buskers - The View
Date:	08/02/08 (96 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: raw, catchy, sing-a-long stuff

Disadvantages: last couple of tracks let the album down

The Tracklist
1. Comin' Down - 7 (out of 10)
2. Superstar Tradesman - 9
3. Same Jeans - 7
4. Don't Tell Me - 6
5. Skag Trendy - 8
6. The Don - 8
7. Face for the Radio - 7
8. Wasted Little DJs - 10
9. Gran's for Tea - 5
10. Dance Into the Night - 5
11. Claudia - 8
12. Street Lights - 4
13. Wasteland - 4
14. Typical Time - 5

The Review

This scottish foursome from Dundee had been in and around the ever-growing british indie circuit for a while before this effort. Support slots with the infamous babyshambles and likewise primal scream have put this band in the hearts of many a scottish working class hero. Drinking and drugging their way through the urban Scottish wastelands with this debut, they look set to dawn a new age of punk fledged pop. Tramp-chic for the masses.

Gatecrashing your living room is opening track 'Coming Down', with its raw and ragged belches of guitar and vocal lead by frontman Kyle Falconer and his celtic yelps of 'yawwwha' and 'waaaaha'. Then, just when you thought you were set for a slice of stodgy (but tasty) meat pie, you're forced to digest 6 packets of worthers originals. In other words, even youre grandad will like these next couple of tracks.

This new chapter begins with 'superstar tradesman', one of the best songs of 2006. The view manage to blast off into a blaze of glam pop and girdband handclap, combining catchy twangly riffs with aspirational lyrics like 'What would you do if I asked you to sail away with me'. Kyle sounds as if he's wailing for all Scotland, desperate for escape and adventure.

From here 'Hats Off to the buskers' continues where it left off, with 'Same Jeans', their best known effort. Wrapped up in tuneful guitar pop with the kind of sentiments you'd only ever think of to write as a teen, aimless observations give this album a british edge. Who else could write a song called 'Gran's For Tea' or sing an entire chorus in a strange, shouty form of pig latin?

As if the band had just engulfed 10g of deep fried amphetamins, 'The Don' then begins. Parrading back and forth, with its jittery hook and reminiscent lyrics ("what we loved most of all was hanging round the shop"), it has elements of Chas and Dave to it.

"Astedwae ittlae ejaysdae!!" kyle then wails, to the backdrop of another great song (wasted little djs), combining the rawness of 'coming down' with the sing-a-long strums of track two. From here the band then drifts into a stream of unconsciousness as they get lost in all the music. By cramming 14 tracks into a mere 40 minutes it was obvious that at some point they'd get bored of recording and head for the pub. By the bog-standardness of 'Dance ino the Night' and 'Street Lights' its clear they obviously did. But fair play to them I say!

Although 'hats off' is as untidy and unorganised as the bedrooms of the fans they preach to, they've still done enough to impress. With their small town-escapism and british melodicism they should last a bit longer on the music scene than most the indie muskateers tend to. Lets all prey they have more shelf life than a slice of dundee cake. But even if they don't, lets make sure to enjoy it while they last.

(also on helium as jac22 and epinions. carneypingu ciao)

Summary: impressive, very impressive