Album Review: Dancer Equired by Times New Viking

As I've said on this blog many times the early 80's are very influential on the current music scene and it is seen perfectly on this album.  You could easily take this LP back in time to 1982 and it would fit in perfectly somewhere between Young Marble Giants and The Milkshakes. 

Let's talk for a minute about what made Young Marble Giants and The Milkshakes work and then layer those influences on Times New Viking.

 Young Marble Giants created this simple, stripped down sound with brilliant heart felt vocals from Alison Statton.  The melodies in many ways seem to be constructed with Statton having to fill in her lyrics around the rest of the band.  It creates an odd contrast at times between her and the rest of the band and makes her voice sound fragile and strained. 

The Milkshakes were part of the garage rock revival and had a dirty sound that revolved around classic garage band tunes and lyrics.  It's short and fast and you can't help but tap your foot along. 

OK now what Times New Viking have done is essentially marry these two ideas.  They have these dirty simple garage rock tunes, but vocally they have pulled straight from the Young Marble Giants playbook.  In many ways then they sound like a noised up version of Young Marble Giants and in many ways it doesn't work.  The one song where they really hit it out of the park is "#$%@ Her Tears."  They crank up the tempo and pull in an energy that is often missing on this album and it makes this combination of sounds come alive in a way that no other moment on this album has.

If you were into this style of post punk stuff in the early 80's then you'll like this album.  If not, and a lot of people weren't, then I'd say stay away it's probably not an album you'll enjoy.

Following the Rhapsody rating method I give it 2 out of 5 stars for Not Bad.