In Threes

Promises Promises
Die! Die! Die!
Universal, 2008
3.5 stars

Recorded at New York's Marcata Studios (birthplace of the great early Walkmen albums), Promises Promises sees these New Zealand boys delivering on the promises of their excellent lead-up EP Locust Weeks. It's a rapid 13-track set of danceable, skeletal post-punk, with a handful of songs barely hitting the two minute mark. But the songs benefit from their brevity - Die Die Die are nothing if not efficient, and not a minute here is wasted. The bare-bones drumming, angular guitars and chirpy, spat vocals will inevitable lead to comparisons with Sonic Youth and Melbourne darlings (and frequent bill-partners) Love of Diagrams, but these guys bring enough to the table to make their sound their very own. Listen Listen Listen.

Artwork: B+ (for effort)

Published in mX, Thursday 21 February 2008.