CARTMAN
- GO!CARTMAN
- GO!
A band who formed in 1997 & who I've previously said are a pretty cool outfit finally release their debut album, titled Go! I'd have to say - it's about bloody time too. I still love their Nobody ep, but this album extends on what they've been doing prior to this & leaves the band's fans with a lasting memory of how cool they are.
Already well under the hammer for airplay on Triple J nationally, I expect that the band's local community radio are also heavily airing a variety of songs here & if they're not, then they need a good kick in the arse I think as there are more than a few potential singles here.
The opening track is "If I", which starts out with a riff that more than reminds me of the music of Bob Mould's Sugar, before dropping back to a more subdued & simple lilting quality of a pop rock number with some nice melodies happening, especially in the chorus.
Second in s the brilliantly energetic number "Shock", which has a very cool aggressive quality & it's this track that most will probably identify the album with already & I'm guessing it's the band's most successful song airplay-wise to date, with good reason.
Next in line is a simple acoustic sort of opening with a great piece of percussion called "George". The song overall is quite simple in itself & I reckon it's probably one of the tracks that many will love the most & may well be the most memorable of the whole album.
For the moment though, "Nobody" is a really cool upvibe number with some great guitar work & a catchy chorus that really makes you want to shake your head around to & in essence, that's where Cartman's talents really lie, in creating catchy pop numbers that make you feel great.
Another very different, more traditional sort of song is "Got No Reason", which has a great guitar driven opening & it's a softer edged song than some of the more upbeat numbers like the aforementioned "Shock", though no less interesting for it.
Some people will already be familiar with the quiet start of "Drive", which is a cool beginning with a great vocal performance & a nice rhythm with the acoustic guitar. Another cool strumming moment arrives with "Song For Absent Friends", which I reckon again shows off the band's wonderful songwriting abilities, yet another softer edged style of song.
I knew the riff from the radio that starts off "Marriage", but didn't know the name of the song until I checked it out & it's another very good track, a nice lead into the chorus & an easy-going nature of track that you'll grow to love if you don't already.
Simple vocals start off "One You're Without" & it's another of the band's great pop songs that you're singing along with in very short time. "Today" reminds me of a song I've heard before, but I can't put a name to it. It's got a ring of You Am I to it at times, but the comparisons end there.
The second last track here is the title track "Go!" & it's another vibed up piece, with some excellent vocal harmonies going on throughout. You'll be hard pressed not to bop along with this song I reckon & it's definitely one of the highlights here.
Closing out is "Toone (She Was Right)", a song driven only by the vocals & acoustic guitar that sums that the band can be just as good without the amps. However, one of the most clever tracks here is an unlisted number that again sits with only voice & acoustic guitar in a very clever summation of what it's like to be in a band & it's here that the genius of Cartman hits the mark - superb, just like the rest of this album.
Go! is out now through Phantom. hEARd rating 10/10
