Jet - Get Born

YOURZ

The deliciously derivative debut from Aussies Jet took the band to the metaphorical heights of the rock industry with tracks Are You Gonna Be My Girl and Rollover DJ.  As an album, it's further proof that the world loves and regularly needs big fat, classic-sounding rock to feed its insatiable, beer-swillling, devil-horns throwing hands-in-the-air needs.

Oh yeah, it sounds like just about any rock and roll outfit of the last 30 or so years.  And they haven't been able to repeat the success of this album.  But so what?  Who gives a fuck?  This is foot-to-the-floor, flatout rock except when it resorts to rock balladry.  But either way, it's well-played, well-polished and absolutely necessary.

VERDICT: TURN IT UP

MINE

A few days ago I was listening to the radio when the announcer was sounding off about Jet's new release - which he said was the same as all their others - ripping off classic rock riffs.  He then played a few songs to prove his point.  I remember thinking at the time - bitter much?  I mean there he is, playing tunes on a Sydney radio station that less than five per cent of the city's population listens to (according to the latest Nielsen survey) and there they are, at the start of a 33-gig national tour supporting Aussie legends Powderfinger.  I know who I'd rather be.

But I'll concede the announcer had a point, after listening to this album all the way through today.  That's something I haven't really done, becasue I put most of it on the gymPod (a Shuffle) when I first got it so I've generally only heard the songs by themselves.

So let's play the game!  Well, you can see just from the album cover this band is screaming "rip-off", as it closely resembles the artwork on the cover of The Beatles' Revolver (reviewed just a few days ago.)  Last Chance is an AC/DC riff, we all know Are You Gonna Be My Girl is Iggy Pop, while I hear some Status Quo on Roll Over DJ.  Look What You've Done is very Beatles, but with a hint of Oasis (made a fool of everyone?) and then Get What You Need moves back to a Quo-ishness.  Move On is somewhere between the Eagles and Neil Young, while Radio Song confused me because I couldn't pin it down.  Get Me Outta Here and Cold Hard Bitch are AC/DC all over, Come Around Again has has a West Coast feel (Henley?) Take It or Leave It is sorta Zeppelin, Lazy Gun is weird because it goes between T Rex and Pink Floyd (who knew that could work in a mash-up?) and then Timothy is definitely Floyd.

Wasn't that fun?  Ah, come on, Jet are everybody's favourite covers band playing their own songs.  Don't you think?

VERDICT: TURN IT UP

For more information: http://www.jettheband.com/

Powderfinger - Double Allergic

MINE

And I thought I didn't know any songs on this album.  But that's the thing about Powderfinger - the songs are just there, under your subconscious, ready to be sung along to.

Double Allergic isn't their best-known album but it contains some damn fine songs.  While I was listening, I was pondering what makes the Finger stand out so - and it's not just the cut-through achieved by Bernard Fanning's vocals.  The songs are polished - but not so much they lose the essential rawness that often characterises Aussie pub rock.

There's variety on the CD, too - it's not all straight edged rock - and it's this melding of hard and soft that along with You Am I makes me wonder what it is that makes one rock band an international success - Jet? - and others not. (YourZ sez: probably because most of the decision makers are SOBs whose only real taste is on the end of their fingers after they scratch their sweaty fat arses).

VERDICT: TURN IT UP (tell your friends)

YOURZ

Here's another band I first met as a fellow musician, playing supports with them when they visited the town I was living in at the time.  But before I get to this, I have to rant.

When we employed the pointy stick to pick out this selection, it first landed on Powderfinger's debut album, Parables For Wooden Ears.  I was stoked because, while we have a number of their albums in our collection, this one was given to me by one of the members of the band after we supported them for the first time.

Upon opening the case to put the disc in and have a listen, I discovered that, at some point in the last number of years, somebody had either stolen the disc itself, or had neglected to put it back in the right case (despite my over-protective habits, this happens when living in group houses).  I can't begin to tell you how fucking annoyed I was and still am about this.  You see, I am anal about our discs - I treat them with respect, look after them, put them away properly and most certainly don't just chuck 'em in what ever case I find handy. Unfortunately, others (particularly some friends I used to share with) don't have the same respect.  Bastards! End result: we had to pick another Powderfinger album and Double Allergic was it.

Anyway, back to this mighty fine band.  Of all the bands I played with back in those days, apart from being articulate, passionate and intelligent musicians, Powderfinger were the nicest, most down to earth blokes one could hope to meet.  The first time I played with them was in a small club when the band was still relatively unknown.

The second time, however, was a much bigger gig.  Pre-show, they invited us to sit at a long table set up back stage and share a meal with them.  They were wonderful hosts who travelled with an entourage of equally down to earth and passionate people.  I think my band were all a little bit awed by how nice and welcoming they all were.  It was almost like being accosted by a hippy sect of some sort and we were waiting for them to either get nude and jump each other or bring out a sacrificial virgin or something similar.  But they didn't do anything of the sort.

What they did is go on to be one of the most loved Australian bands of the last 20 years, playing an updated cross between grunge and pub rock coupled with sensitive and intelligent lyrics, and hook-laden choruses.  Like the men themselves, their music is smart, fun, thoughful and honest.  Yeah, this isn't their 'best' album in terms of success.  But you know anything these guys release is going to be the best they could have done at the time.  And what more can a fan ask?

VERDICT: TURN IT UP

For more information: http://www.powderfinger.com/

In our collection we also have Internationalist and Odyessy Number Five