Considering all the smart-arse social narrative that is de rigeur in pop these days, it’s damn refreshing to hear something that cuts right back into primal emotion. Evidently the main advantage that teen siblings Ivan and Ada have as Tiny Masters of Today is that they’re creating from pure instinct because they haven’t had time to be over-exposed to music.
‘Hey Mr DJ’ works on a simple fuzz guitar riff and repetitive lyrics, but there is some adult input as well that makes it work. Thanks to Blues Explosion’s Russell Simins, the production is suitably dirty, carnal and funky, and you do have to wonder whether it was his bright idea to insert the particularly grinding coda of guitar and drum triplets. The fact that CSS roll up to add some old-skool scratches to their lo-fi garage rock only adds greater depth to the verses. The Brazilians have kept a minimalist approach to their involvement, and it’s all the better for it.
The additional Liars remix pulses around the drum track, adding eyelash fluttering waves of percussion and relentlessly staggers the vocals. Inevitably, everything suddenly sounds much more sinister when these boys are around. The wonders of second track, ‘Lucky Number Nine’, shouldn’t be overlooked either. With a chorus that tiptoes around the same melody as Camper Van Beethoven’s ‘Take The Skinheads Bowling’, it’s a delight to hear a catchy chorus scuffling with distortion as opposed to something that’s been polished up to soundtrack anything from TV trailers to Match of the Day.
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8Lianne Steinberg's Score