 Giant
Value
"On the Move" CD
Self-released
Genres: indie pop, pop
e-mail the
band
Oct 13 - 19 2003 |
Indie
pop, how loveable ye are! So many have done you and yet you
still remain joyously fresh and cheerful! You give so much and
ask so little. And now you've got another band on your
bandwagon, that being San Francisco's Giant Value. Though they have
a slight country influence in a few of their tunes, they're still
indie pop plain and true, and their debut album, On the Move,
will likely find its niche in the music collections of pop aficionados.
This is a very good debut. While it isn't going to be deemed
a classic, On the Move still sounds like the start of something
good. Giant Value have a twangy, sparse sound, and they
stick instantly-memorable pop hooks into their music en masse.
Tunes like "No News" and the terrifically catchy
"Writing" combine an unusual style with Shins-esque
sensibility. The latter is one of the album's strongest songs;
its bouncy, tension-building verse makes the chorus seem like pure
paradise. It's one of the better pop tunes out there.
The fun continues for eleven full songs with few moments of
mediocrity. By the time the album ends you'll have no other
chance but to take it from the top and listen to it again. The
band's steady mix of youthful vocals, buzzing keyboards, sweet guitars,
and mellow percussion is practically irresistible.
This is an extremely good debut, and one that deserves a large
audience. If Giant Value can improve upon this in future
albums, they'll be indie pop heroes in no time.
87%
Matt Shimmer
[Vitals: 12 tracks, distributed by CD
Baby, released 2002] |
