MAXIMO PARK'S previous single "Apply Some Pressure" was a decent enough stab of spiky pop attichood, but sailed too close to the Futureheads' herky-jerky Geordie blueprint for comfort. It suggested that what was sounding fresh and exciting twelve months back was already spawning the depressingly predictable slew of imitators.
So, standing downwind of MP'S new single "Graffiti" is a surprisingly exhilarating blast this writer hadn't been expecting. It truly is much more like it: coming barrelling out of the speakers with the sort of mod-pop energy we used to get from bands like The Chords, but with a full-blooded organ and Paul Smith's heavily-accented vox chucking lyrical tacks all over the road for good measure. It's full of bluster, passion and vitriol and adds up to the sort of piss and vinegar pop this writer hadn't previously thought Maximo Pop could dream of.
Sadly, they're back to normal with the undernourished "Trial And Error" on the flip. This is much closer to the Futureheads' xerox of "Apply Some Pressure", and once again too close to pastiche to convince. It's a shame as it feels like a retrograde step after the piledriving presence of "Graffiti." Oh well, back to the drawing board again, lads.
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I truly hope "Graffiti" isn't a flash in the pan. It's in a completely different league to everything else this writer has so far heard from these attention-grabbing Newcastle boys and demands they keep the bar raised. I'm still not entirely convinced, but at least with "Graffiti", Maximo Park prove they have it in them to spray some genius around should they choose to apply themselves wholeheartedly in the future.
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