CD Review: The Fireworks "Switch Me On" (Shelflife Records)

[£10 // http://thefireworksgopop.bandcamp.com/album/switch-me-on]

As the first note of "Switch Me On" comes from my stereo speakers I feel as if a switch has literally been turned on.   This is nonstop rock and pressing play is the equivelant of setting off a nuclear bomb on your ears.    At its heart, The Fireworks crank out catchy, garage pop rock tunes but there is something extra to them and they just refuse to stop rocking throughout.

The Fireworks trade off on both male and female vocals but don't seem to do it during the course of the same song, something that I've always attributed to Rainer Maria for whatever reason.    When there are female lead vocals, which is how this CD begins, then there can be male backing vocals and vice versa but, no, they really don't do the trading off thing that has become so popular these days.

Everything from The Muffs, Dance Hall Crashers, the "Angus" soundtrack on the whole, Gin Blossoms, Lemonheads, The Mr. T Experience, "That Thing You Do!" and the obligatory Joan Jett and Blondie references come out here.    It's something that on paper may not sound the most appealing because you might feel like you've seen these influences listed too many times before but this is just such a great CD.

When I was eighteen going on nineteen The Mr. T Experience was pretty popular within the circles I ran with.   I had this one girlfriend for a short bit and I ended up becoming friends with one of her friends instead and we would go everywhere we could, out of our way even, to see The Mr. T Experience.     That feeling is something I haven't felt in a long time.   Remember when bands like that used to exist?

I'm not saying that The Fireworks sound exactly like that because they don't.   They have other facets of their music for sure, but just that raw energy and the fact that I felt like I could sing along with these songs after the first time I heard them and that was not a bad thing just made me an instant fan of this.   The only way I could imagine someone not being a fan of The Fireworks now is simply because they have not heard them yet.