Rating:
Genre:
Rock
Release Date: 10/03/2006
The Kooks arrived fully formed in 2006, for their debut sounds like the work of a band well into its career: the confidence with which the foursome from Brighton play and the abandon with which
Luke Pritchard sings; the witty songcraft and deft arrangements; the drama and fervor they unleash from the very first notes and carry through to the end. They display maturity but also play with the fervor of kids and project a wide-eyed charm that is very endearing. On most of
Inside In/Inside Out, the band sounds like a more energetic
Thrills or a looser
Sam Roberts Band, maybe even a less severe
Arctic Monkeys at times. Along with these modern kinships and influences, the band is heavily indebted to classic
rock. Traces of
Thin Lizzy's romantic lyricism pop up on tracks like
"Eddie's Gun," and so does a bit of
post-punk spikiness on
"You Don't Love Me," some
Dexys singalong booziness on
"She Moves in Her Own Way," and a hint of
jam-band funk on
"Match Box." Quite varied influences, and in the end the band sounds like
the Kooks and no one else. A nice and unique sound doesn't mean much without some songs to fill it out, and
the Kooks deliver plenty of memorable tunes.
"Eddie's Gun," "See the World," the unfortunately named
"Jackie Big Tits," and
"Ooh La" are very strong and, taken together, equal the output of just about any
pop/rock band around in 2006. The only song that falls flat is the over-long
reggae-rocker
"Time Awaits." It's the only track that breaks the four-minute mark, and it shows that
the Kooks' strength isn't stretching out and jamming; their chops are best suited for short, sharp blasts of invigorating
pop/rock. When they stick to that,
the Kooks are an exciting, very promising band, and
Inside In/Inside Out is an excellent debut. [The U.S. release adds a bonus track,
"Do You Love Me Still?," and the video for
"Eddie's Gun."]
~Tim Sendra, All Music Guide
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