Album Review: The Vaccines - Come Of Age

The Vaccines
Come Of Age
Rating: Grrrr

The Vaccines' debut album What Do You Expect From The Vaccines? left me rather unimpressed, owing to the monstrous hype from the UK press as the band being the savior of guitar rock, but finding it to only being a moderately interesting run-of-the-mill alt-guitar album. Not that there was anything horrible on the record, in fact there were several catchy pop tracks, but overall it never really rose above merely pleasant. So, when their follow up Come Of Age found its way into my inbox I was less than in a hurry to get to it. Somewhat reluctantly I decided to listen to it and my first spin through it did nothing to change my perspective on the band and put it aside again. For some reason, I found it back on my hard drive when I was culling some chaff and thought, well, I might as well listen to it one more time before deleting it. I'm not sure if it were my mood that had changed or if it suddenly just clicked with me, but Come Of Age sounded different. I suppose my lack of real expectation in it allowed me to actually listen to it, and it is a surprisingly catchy record, full of sterling singles. Does this mean that The Vaccines are now living up to that storied hype? Well, not really. I still don't think this band deserves god-like status, however, they do need to be recognized for coming together with a set of almost instantly hook ready tracks that are hard to get out of one's head.

Blasting out of the gate with the raucous "No Hope," The Vaccines deliver a snide, jaded track about growing up,



and just continue on with track after track of catchy goodness, like the shambling "I Always Knew," and the pop goodness of "Teenage Icon," with its ridiculously memorable chorus.



Perhaps it is owing to working with producer Ethan Johns (Ryan Adams, Kings of Leon, Laura Marling) that has given them more focus and clear-headed direction, but The Vaccines seem more cohesive even with the album's tracks veering all over the guitar rock spectrum. From the punkabilly of "Ghost Town,"



Pavement-esque slacker rock of "Weirdo,"



spiky, 60's styled pop of the witty "I Wish I Was Girl," and the wandering noir/alt-country of closing stunner "Lonely World,"



The only real missteps are the overly sunny/quirky flower power track "Aftershave Ocean,"



and the George Harrison aping guitar solos of "All In Vein" that comes across more as parody than a truly respectful approximation.

Ultimately, Come Of Age is just a really good guitar pop record full of catchy riffs, memorable melodies, and, what was mainly lacking from their debut, a sense of personality. As I mentioned, this album is not going to change the axis of the planet or lay waste to the rock landscape, but if you want a really great rock record, you can certainly do a lot worse.

Rating Scale:

Chilfos: masterpiece; coolest thing I've heard in ages.

Woof Daddy: excellent; just a hair away from being a masterpiece.

Grrrr: very good; will definitely be considered for my top releases of the year.

Yeah Daddy Make Me Want It: good; definitely invites further listens and piques one's interest for more material.

Meh: not horrible, but certainly not great; could have either been polished, trimmed, or re-thought.

Jeez Lady: what the hell happened? Just plain bad. They should hang their heads in shame and be forced to listen to Lady Gaga ad nauseam as penance.

Tragicistani: so bad, armed villagers with pitchforks and torches should run the artist out of the country for inflicting this abomination on the human race.

Coachella 2012 Countdown: 39 Days! The Vaccines - "Post Break-Up Sex"

Although their debut album didn't do much for me, I do enjoy this track a lot.

The Vaccines: What Did You Expect From The Vaccines?

The Vaccines
What Did You Expect From The Vaccines?
Rating: Meh

It really bothers me when magazines or newspapers hype a band so much that there is no conceivable way they could ever live up to the expectations. NME is probably the worst offender in this regard. While it may whip up a frenzy surrounding a new band, more often than not, the band fades away into obscurity. Does anyone really remember The Vines, Gay Dad, or Kasabian? Few, for sure. It really bothers me when a band is really young and this over-hype potentially destroys their careers. Recently NME, anointed The Vaccines as "The Return of the Great British Guitar Band," which would crush the shoulders of anyone carrying that kind of weight. Is their debut album worthy of all the hype? Honestly, not really. Is it worth monstrous scorn? Not at all. The Vaccines are not the great white hope, nor are they terrible. They are just an above-average guitar band that makes catchy music. When they are full throttle, they even sound inspired, but for the most part this group of songs is a placeholder, showing a band with some talent, but not really putting down a distinctive stamp to make them stand out from bands doing it better.

The Vaccines work best when they don't try so hard. My favorite track is "All In White," which travels outside the band's template of steady beat and chiming guitars. It actually builds tension with a varied beat and soaring electronics.



Or the feedback drenched ""Blow It Up."



However, the majority of tracks are just pleasant, run-of-the-mill guitar pop. There is really nothing here to complain about as the songs are all nice and strike a mood, but they just don't go anywhere. The tracks don't stay long in the memory, unfortunately.

First track "Wreckin' Bar (Ra Ra Ra)" is only memorable because it steals directly from The Ramones.



"Post Break-Up Sex" is memorable more for its title than the song itself.



What Did You Expect From The Vaccines? is the perfect title for the album (and shows the band does have a sense of humor about all the hype) because the album is all about expectations. Based on the NME hype machine I was waiting to be blown away by something new and fresh. The finished product though is well below my expectations. The album basically fades into the background because it has already been done before, and done better. There is a good base here, and hopefully, like Radiohead, this is just a stepping off point to something better. Time will tell if they are still around in 10 years or relegated to the basement of formerly hyped NME bands.

Rating Guide

Chilfos: masterpiece; coolest thing I've heard in ages.

Woof Daddy: excellent; just a hair away from being a masterpiece.

Grrrr: very good; will definitely be considered for my top releases of the year.

Yeah Daddy Make Me Want It: good; definitely invites further listens and peaks one's interest for more material.

Meh: not horrible, but certainly not great; could have either been polished, trimmed, or re-thought.

Jeez Lady: what the hell happened? Just plain bad. They should hang their heads in shame and be forced to listen to Lady Gaga ad nauseam as penance.

Tragicistani: so bad, armed villagers with pitchforks and torches should run the artist out of the country for inflicting this abomination on the human race.

Videos of the Week

Friday is finally upon us and, unfortunately, I have to work all weekend. Woe is me. Oh well, better than not having a job I suppose. Here are the videos that tickled my fancy this week:



Insanely sick video from Is Tropical. This is one of the most imaginative clips I have seen in awhile. Very violent, but in a cartoon way.

Tags: Foo Fighters, Music, More Music Videos

Foo Fighters reimagine Michael Douglas' movie Falling Down.



Standout track from Cold Cave's new album Cherish The Light Years gets an evocatively shot video.



Robyn bitches.



NSFW video from Brit buzz band The Vaccines.



Delorean put on such a fun show at Coachella this year. And I have such a crush on the yellow t-shirted keyboardist.



Great song from the Danish punk band Iceage.

Videos of the Week

What a week it has been. Didn't think I would get through it with my sanity intact. Here are the videos that made this week much less insufferable:



Wild Beasts' album Smother is fast becoming my album of the year. I listen to it about 5 times a day and am always discovering something new. Here is a live performance of "Bed of Nails" on Jools Holland.



New Beyonce video for the Major Lazer sampling track "Run The World (Girls)." The song is very lazy, but the video is kicking.



Strange video from the Swedish artist known as iamwhoiam, who last year, released a slew of weird, arty clips that had people thinking it was new material from Fever Ray, Goldfrapp, or even Christina Aguilera.



Video for the combined single "Lindesfarne" from post-dubstep prodigy James Blake.



New track from Joker. Slamming track.



Second video from EMA's album Past Life Martyred Saints. She is drawing comparision to everyone from PJ Harvey, Courtney Love, and Patti Smith. Her album is a difficult listen, but ultimately very rewarding.



90's alt-rock revivalists The Vaccines video for "If You Wanna."

Non-Sequiturs

I am finally settled in at our house in Indio, California, mere miles away from the polo fields that host the Coachella Music Festival. Can't wait to hit the grounds and have some fun. Set times came out and unfortunately, as always, there are lots of conflicts. But, part of that make it fun, figuring out who you should focus your attention on.

First Klaxons drop out of Coachella (they were my only must kill to see band) and now word is that Suede's bassist is having visa issues and won't make it, but that they intend to play without him. Not sure how the hell that is going to work. Definitely makes me give long thought to whether I want to see them. If there is a conflict, I will likely skip them.

New crush on The Amazing Race, Justin Kanew. So cute and nerdy.

My favorite LOLcats from the past couple of weeks.

It's very strange how the mind works; locked in some dark room is some memory just waiting for a key to open the door to let it out. I had two distinct memories come out of nowhere today. The first was triggered by smelling the new carpet and paint from the office renovation; it brought me back immediately to when we moved into my family's house on Marsh Drive in Savannah. The second was triggered by a blast of cold air that has been on full in the kitchen area all day. It reminded me so much of my Communications Law class at UGA, and how we used to freeze in the classroom each Spring day.

Lyrics Rattling Around My Head

"Leave it 'til the guilt consumes
Fucking in the nearest room
All our friends were unaware
Most had just passed out downstairs.

To think I'd hoped you'd be okay,
Now I can't think of what to say,
Maybe I misunderstood,
But I can't believe you're feeling good, from

Post break-up sex
that helps you forget your ex,
What did you expect from post break up sex?"

The Vaccines
"Post-Breakup Sex"

"I know the stars will align
if not tonight then some other time
sleeping off the shade in the back of a car
I tried to get away but the car wouldn't start

I may never get it right
my chemicals, they balance in some other light
I never thought that we wouldn't rule the world
I always think we will
I keep my teeth clenched still"

Cold Cave
"Confetti"

"Take my life
What's my life like?
What's my work like?
How do I pass time?

Open my eyes so I might see mine
So I'll be with mine
No matter what it takes
Take my life so high
Keep my life light"

Panda Bear
"Tomboy"

"Despite of all our conflict
I still sit and adore you
A tragedy for the ages
Now at least I can say this

Even though our love has died,
You're still mine
You're still mine
Even though our love has died,
You're still mine
You're still mine"

Craft Spells
"For The Ages"

Appealing Things

Ginger bears
Vacation
Having awesome neighbors take care of my cat while I am gone
Street Halo 12"
Simply Saline spray

Annoying Things

Barely getting Kurt's Coachella ticket before leaving for Indio
Waiting for the set times
Set time conflicts
Getting a horrible cold/allergy attack two days before leaving on vacation
Forecast of 98 degrees each day of the festival

The Vaccines: "Post-Breakup Sex"

Much buzzed about UK band The Vaccines channel everyone from Jesus and Mary Chain, The Ramones, and Pulp, with their jangly, fuzzed out take on 60s garage rock. First single and video from their debut album What Did You Expect From The Vaccines is a catchy little ditty called "Post-Breakup Sex."