AKA The Hots - Touchy CD EP

This 7 song, 23 minute debut is a corker filled with counter-pounching, clever jabs of Attractions-era Costello and the power hooks of 70`s Cheap Trick, it all adds up to a substantial slice of smart pop. This debut portends plenty of great things from this Canadian trio - they are firmy grounded in all good things new wave circa 1979 parading herky-jerky pop hooks---think Code Blue, Any Trouble but also Not Lame faves The Montgomerys/Irresponsibles from Boston and The Smugglers. For more obscure inclined, Skafish) Lead singer Shane Quinn has a wry bravado delivery and tone that is perfect for the material`s `nudge-nudge, wink-wink` humour while the rest of the band drive the back-beat with a crackling energy and uplifting stop-start flecks and shards of biting guitar chords that rip straight into the jugular for maximum affect. "Where so much power pop loses its initial sugar-buzz faster than baseball card bubblegum, this Toronto trio`s songs reveal their charms gradually, once vocallist Shane T. Quinn has worked up the appropriate tension to match his anxious words, and the band`s steady drive builds to a roar"-EyeWeekly. Grade: A-.

Listen - mp3