Frisbie:
Subversive Sounds of Love (Hear Diagonally)

The debut disc by this Chicago quintet is power pop, pure and simple -- lush harmonies, chiming guitars and surprise chord changes aplenty. But unlike a lot of bands who align themselves along the Beatles/Big Star/Cheap Trick axis, Frisbie comes off as neither fussy nor fey, and after an impressive, incendiary live gig at a recent street festival, I finally gave in and let their sugar buzz carry me away. No, I don't always know what the words mean ("Honestly indifferent to your own satellite'? "When ambiguities run more like some regime'?), and if these guys were any less committed to their tunes that lyrical obscurity would probably bother me more than it does. As it is, I can't get half the tracks here out of my head, a feat no album in this genre has managed since Matthew Sweet's Girlfriend way back in the last century. Hopefully, time will add some complexity to their character, but anyone longing for good, old-fashioned songcraft and indelible melodies will find Frisbie ready to drink right now. (Subversive Sounds of Love is available from the label Web site, www.heardiagonally.com.)

your shot
Think you can do better? Email us your pithy comments on the cd's and shows we review, and the lists and essays we write. We'll publish excerpts in future editions...

review archive

front page