Pom Poko - Cheater

Bella Union

Pom Poko, the Norwegian noise rock/pop collective, have released their second album on the Bella Union record label. It is a refreshing and a modest follow up to their debut 'Birthday'.

Pom Poko make what I would happily call ying-yang music. From order to chaos at the drop of a hat, Cheater is prone to downward spirals into utter madness. Revel in the sheer out-thereness of it all. You have to appreciate a band that are willing to go beyond convention and bring home a listenable experience that is both a breathe of fresh air and simultaneously wrapped in sunshine pop sensibilities. This is the perfect album for someone interested in exploring more experimental music pastures. It doesn't leave the listener stranded. The band manages to play around within the parameters of pop music while also pushing them. Alternative radio would welcome the likes of 'Like A Lady' with its Pixies influenced loud/quiet dynamic, while 'Danger Baby' and its beautiful Built to Spill-like guitar work could be found on any kind of mainstream channel with relative ease.

There's always something going on to grab onto. These tracks have safety bars in melodic phrasings and catchy guitar wizardry for those testing the waters. Multifaceted guitarwork would be the best term to refer to it. The guitars are used in a textural sense and also as a means of straight up attack. This leaves a lot of space for everything and anything in between and thats exactly what you get with this release.

Overall a superb album. It has to be said that fans of this must check out Deerhoof and vice versa.

Favourite Track: Like A Lady, Baroque Denial