KIWI JR. – BLOWIN’ UP

While it doesn’t happen more often than not, you’re attracted to something so energetic every step of the way; there’s no reason not to enjoy something. That something doesn’t always have to come with a label attached to it because hey, satisfaction has always come wrapped neatly in a warm blanket. Yeah, it’s that same blanket you’ve felt, year after year, offering the same toasty feel that comes with it.

Now, never straying far from the enjoyable notes, chords, & melodies the group has delivered on its past releases, Football Money (2020), Cooler Returns (2021), and Chopper (2022), the Canadian Kiwi Jr. comes back with its first release in four years. Before even listening to the band’s new Blowin’ Up (K Records), it seems my mind was already prepared and made up on how it was to be judged. But I’m getting ahead of myself here, right? I mean, after all, the group, comprised of Jeremy Gaudet (vocals), Mike Walker (bass), Brohan Moore (drums), and Brian Murphy (guitar) can’t be that good. Or are they?

Things do get interesting here, and while we may have heard the general indie rock sound in the past, Kiwi Jr. has made it its own, embellishing it with an identity no one could possibly replicate. There’s an energy to the band that remains unmatched and just the title track alone delivers it from the get-go. Maybe the band is feeling itself, but why shouldn’t it as keyboards & guitars lead the way as Gaudet’s sung/spoken vocals laconically attack with his words “…Caster Plaster of Paris, is the look on your face when you first heard, we’re blowin’ up.” Or even during the chorus when he adds, “…When detectives get here on Monday morning they’re gonna have a lot of warnings, and it’s our fingerprints at the scene.” Sure, he’s not direct about it, leaving it completely tongue-in-cheek, continuing that journey setting into reality of not being as great as they might think they are. There’s an absurd amount of clever wording here to keep you guessing, and you might even make your own assumptions about it. But it’s the music; the frenetic energy surrounding the rhythm, it doesn’t stop. For fuck’s sake, this is probably one of the greatest pop songs I’ve heard this year! It’s undeniably my favorite.

“Pure Michigan” holds onto that same energy, propelled by those keyboards, embellished with guitars, and there are multiple pauses throughout, but it’s far from creating those stop/start dynamics one might think; it’s seamless and inviting. Kiwi Jr.’s instruments coalesce without any issues, and the band consistently flirts within a punk ethos while infiltrating the track with a catchy melody that moves like a freight train propelled by Brohan Moore’s drumming. We see and hear him; his playing is hard to miss! The band knows how to captivate listeners, and you don’t have to make sense of Gaudet’s lyrics because they’re nestled perfectly within the mix. I say that because I have no idea what “Stage Names” is about as he sings, “Alice in Chains summer, threw the tape deck into the pool, ‘Annie can’t make the show tonight,’ says the song you said sounded cool…” which made me go down a rabbit hole looking for an AIC track with those lyrics. But I think I just played myself. I digress. The song’s pop-finesse can’t be denied as Walker’s bass is matched by Murphy’s guitar. Have I told you how good the band is? Yeah, without any doubt.

The band isn’t all about power and quickness though, as it offers up a different side of its sound with a mid-tempo pace of “Landscape With Limousine,” as guitars & keys rise above the cacophony, or may even create a semblance of it. The melody and the echoing backing vocal seem to create a different kind of atmosphere around it. Feedbacking instruments add to that atmosphere, and at just over 5 minutes long, the group takes its time, allowing the song to develop a life all its own.

We can all be honest here, right? We’re family after all, ain’t we? Of course, if I have the option, I’m going to allow the band’s music to play if it randomly comes on, but there’s nothing random about Kiwi Jr. At this point in the band’s career, the members know how to create well-thought-out songs that deliver the potency of their instruments on steroids. Blowin’ Up shows exactly what the band is doing right. This is the way; there is no other route for them.

SWEEPING PROMISES – YOU SAY I ROMANTICIZE

We live in times of excess and gluttony, with the remaining five deadly sins coming up quickly behind to round it all out. But while there may be moments we’re inundated with a bland variety of sounds cultivated throughout culture, we realize that’s where the problem is. Creativity seems far and few between the cracks and crevices of our lives, but when it eventually surfaces, we know it and want to hold onto it.

With that said, I’ve never heard of the Lawrence, Kansas duo of Sweeping Promises, and with two previous releases, maybe we should. But come on, they’re the few of the many that come across our paths. There’s no denying, with its third offering, You Say I Romanticize (Sub Pop), the band just might be onto something with its take on 70s/80s-like art-punk. Don’t get me wrong, the group – made up of guitarist Caufield Schnug and bassist/vocalist Lira Mondal – has its feet firmly planted in a contemporary world. From the start, Sweeping Promises makes its presence known with “Shooting Shadows,” fitting it with a driving rhythm that’s unrelenting, even when the drums vanish briefly. Mondal’s screeching voice fits its own narrative as guitar and bass smother the scenery all around it. This. Is. Punk. Straightforward and to the point.

The band does have its moments where its own influences seem a bit more obvious, but the members take it and just run with it, utilizing the pattern but stitching together something all its own. “My Friend’s An Entomologist” takes its lead from Joan and Lita, as the song’s throbbing gristling enunciates its guitar as Mondal’s voice here shows a deeper range melodically. And then there’s “Abduction On Camera,” giving off those 1970s Debbie & Chris vibes, but aesthetically, this is much more punk than they would ever sound. It’s rough and raw, all the while punching through with much more intensity. It’s the rhythm; it’s direct and in your face, but the band includes other instrumentation to embellish the song’s melody. It works to the band’s benefit, and that’s what we’re all here for.

Man, this is punk, another variation of it we’ve seemed to have lost sight of, the kind indie bands in the 90s made popular again. But don’t confuse Sweeping Promises with any sort of Riot Grrl movement because the band is a beast all its own, and You Say I Romanticize offers that for everyone to see.