The Rosa Riot - Three Chord Casanovas
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| The Rosa Riot - Three Chord Casanovas |
A feature of my teenage voyage of
musical discovery was the steady flow of constantly excellent Scandinavian and
Nordic indie bands. From the Wannadies, the Cardigans and Grass Show to the
Sugarcubes and the Hives, there was always someone singing curious lyrics with
a captivatingly exotic accent and, invariably, piercing eyes. I can't comment
on the eyes, but for me the Rosa Riot could fit in with the aforementioned
imports in terms of quality. Having said that, these songs are much garage rock
influenced than indie-pop so that do stand alone in that sense. The opening
track to this EP is a scratchy, swaggering number by the name of 'Anytime,
Anywhere' that switches from the Liverpool's beat scene to a U2 sized moody
chorus. We've all been to 'Hangover Square' but I doubt many of us have
experienced it with the wall of noise and sheer defiance that the Rosa Riot
manage it. Most impressive, gentlemen.
The stand out track for me on
this collection is 'She's Got The Goods' which gives a nod to the Hives but has
a more melodic 70s tinge to it as well as a proper floor stompin, fist pumping,
head banging chorus. This Danish-Icelandic combination of musicians could, if
you close your eyes and ignore some of the accents on show, be playing as warm
up for Iggy and the Stooges in a sweaty club with anxious New York cops waiting
by the doors - not sure whether this is illegal or just inspirational. The EP
ends on something of a downer with the organ-heavy 'Flowers For Your Grave' but
it's a charming, film credits soundtrack of a song that should only ever be
listened to in monochrome and, preferably, on vinyl. This EP has been out for a
little while so I would grab a copy and get yourself warmed up for the new
album which is being worked on with none other than the legendary Mark Kramer
of Sonic Youth and Lou Reed fame. Yes, him.
More information: www.therosariot.com
Live Dates:
3rd August - Spirefestival, Holbaek, Denmark