Hi-Fi Serious

by

A

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Despite all the doom, and gloom, and artifice, something glorious is happening in music this year. Kids reared on 80's pop metal and 90's grunge are growing up to create music that brings the two genres together into the perfect power punk combination. Witness Andrew WK, Jimmy Eat World, the Hives, Weezer, and now A. Hi Fi Serious is A's latest album, and if this isn't a bid for commercial superstardom, nothing is. But here's the thing: when you try and reach a broad audience by concentrating on melody, and not image, great things can happen. And here's proof.

Hi Fi Serious is a gloriously overproduced 50 minutes of fun. Only the opener, "Nothing," is a dud (and even it has a killer bridge). Everything that follows is straight pop rock out of Def Leppard's playbook, only with that little bit of 90's edge that makes all the difference between wimpy poser music and rock star glory. "Something's Going On" and "6 O'Clock on a Tube Stop" set the tone with quietly tuneful verses and soaring choruses. The band then rockets through 9 more songs, ditching ballads, and emphasizing melodies so big you could surf down them. Sure, the lyrics leave a little to be desired, but who cares? You'll be too busy hopping up and with a silly grin on your mug to care. A gets away with it because it's musical sensibility is as innocent as a first kiss. Songs like "Nothing and "Shut Yer Face" try and give them a little more attitude, but they don't need it. Not when they have a song like "Pacific Ocean Blue," a song so big and wonderful it makes you remember why pop is king. Try sitting still while hearing it. You'll fail miserably.

This newest breed of pop rock (which A fits squarely into) hasn't truly broken through yet to mainstream dominance. But efforts like Hi Fi Serious make it an issue of when, and not if, one of these great acts blows sky high and sells 10 million records. A's put out as worthy a candidate as you can find. Highly recommended.

(Note: American issues of Hi Fi Serious include a bonus track "Champions of Endings," a Jane's Addiction-inspired soarer that is absolutely brilliant. Make sure your copy has it.)