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Title: Neo or retro?
Review: The psychedelia-lite of this album, with proudly raspy, utterly English vocals, emphatically enigmatic lyrics and duelling guitars, calls to mind nothing so much as the mid-90's pilferings of Britpop. But of course the grave that the likes of Elastica were robbing was that of great defunct bands like...The Soft Boys. Revisiting these revisitations seems strangely appropriate for the ultra-arch Hithcock and pals, and they don't really bother with the authenticity worries that their long hiatus might engender, but get right down to the business of putting together stretched-out poppy/punky/new wave guitar tunes with a surprisingly strong backbeat. There are a few clunkers, but generally it's a joy to listen to, and if some of the songs sound like they're made by a convention of Andy Partridge, Mick Jagger, and Ray Davies, well, you could do a lot worse. You can almost hear Blur's Damon Albarn taking notes.
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