Back when I was a young muso play drums in the Jazz combo and Big Band at Glenfield College, there was always a few of the older lads that I always looked up to. I followed them a bit when we left school, a few of them went onto form a band called Rubicon, who’s name got around very quickly due to the simple fact that the lead singer had a starring role on NZ’s own Shortland Street. If you push that fact aside, the songs were actually really pop rock orientated, had a lot of influences from bands like Nirvana, and sounded great. Over 10 years on, and I see that their guitarist has emerged from the woodwork into a band under the AAA records label called Radioglo.

I wasn’t sure what to expect – I know Gene Bennett has an amazing ability to build and repair guitars, and I know a few people who only trust him to work on their instruments, so I was really looking forward to giving this record a spin.

The first few notes lead me back to fifth form where I remember a band called Eye TV playing at Browns Bay in the back of a semi-truck on the beach. The sound reminds me so much of this, yet distinctly quite different. The drumming is nice and tight, but also simple and effective. Radioglo liken themselves to Tom Petty and Neil Young – which I would say 100% true. I hear influences on all of their tracks of each of both these artists, but I also hear some pop influences of later years. I also however hear a few of the late 80’s and early 90’s grunge band riffs sneaking into context below such as Mudhoney and Tripping Daisy.

The new album is a good length – they have kept a true 13 tracks which is awesome given that so many bands are releasing shorter and shorter albums even right down to 7 or 8 tracks these days. Tracks on the album are quite different in sound which is refreshing. You do actually feel like you’ve got the whole deal from the band not just a 60 minute track divided into 3 minute portions with differing names.

My favourite composition on the album is Track number 8,Failsafe. I can’t really explain the reasons for it, I just feel that all the instruments sit so nicely into the mix – guitar and bass grooving well together, the drumline sits underneath flawlessly, and the vocal effect over the top reminds me of Tyson Kennedy from Steriogram but in a sung version, not the rapping version.

There is some really nice work on this album, it’s almost something you would expect in a hi-fi state – it would have been awesome to have heard it on record. I definitely recommend giving this one a spin if you are keen on your modern rock ’n roll tones, but hints of a pop sound from the yesteryear sneaking through. Very easy listening without being easy listening.

Good work Radioglo.

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• 5
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• 6
  L.A.B.
• 7
  Devilskin
• 8
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• 10
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  APT.
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• 2
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• 3
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• 4
  TASTE
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• 5
  I LOVE YOU, I'M SORRY
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• 6
  ESPRESSO
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• 7
  SAILOR SONG
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• 8
  LOSE CONTROL
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• 9
  A BAR SONG (TIPSY)
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• 10
  GOOD LUCK, BABE!
  Chappell Roan

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