The Maccabees

Colour It In

(Geffen)

Record Review by Marcel Feldmar

So I’ve been hearing this name dropped around for a few months now like they’re the next buzz or the new thing – you know – the blogosphere is drooling for the hot sounds of The Maccabees. This is the next Arctic Monkeys, or this is the band that will change your life or this is the band that will make you totally forget about the Pigeon Detectives or the Klaxons or the whatsit namesit, or who knows… All I know is that there’s a new band you must hear that will change everything appearing every month at least… and these Maccabees (I betcha) don’t even have a MSTRKRFT remix to their name... but they do have a quote from NME saying “the Best New Band in Britain” – which puts them right up there with every other band you’ve ever heard of in the last 20 years or so… I mean – really – weren’t Muse and the Klaxons and Kasabian and the Fratellis, Razorlight, Kooks, View, Oasis, Blur, the Beatles… when’s the last time you were rocking out to the Fratellis? So – I’ll stop ranting now – sorry – the hype rubs me the wrong way most of the time. It’s like being forced to watch bad commercials when you just want to watch a good show…let’s just put that hype aside for the moment – and take a listen.

Well – it’s like the Arctic Monkeys on speed? It’s some kinda guitar spaz Elvis Costello throwback pushing hard against franz bravery strokes ferdinand ok haircut go 100… with some other random '80s English Beats hitting the refried sounds of last year looking over the shoulder with one ear on the radio. But they have accents, so it’s cool… right? Don’t get me wrong, the songs are catchy, and have some nice dynamics, but the popularity is only going to last as long as the sound, and that sound is already fading.