The Fresh & Onlys - Play It Strange

Following some successful support slots on tour with Deerhunter and Clinic, San Francisco quartet The Fresh & Onlys have unleashed a highly likeable record in the form of ‘Play It Strange’.

Seeing as they’re a group who are proving difficult to pigeon-hole - something which undoubtedly works in their favour - there’s plenty to explore on the album from a stylistic point-of-view. This isn’t to say the record’s lacking in cohesion though, with a sense of melodic pop sensibility at the heart of everything they do.

However, we’re not talking all Beach Boys-style harmonies here. Like a fair portion of the high-profile ‘garage rock’ records which have emerged from the west coast of the US in the past couple of years, ‘Play It Strange’ manages to straddle the chasm between muddy and psychedelic to admirable effect.

Tracks like ‘Waterfall’ and ‘Be My Hooker’ encapsulate what The Fresh & Onlys are about rather perfectly. They’ve got bags of rhythmic energy, high-pitched backing vocals, growling basslines and some guitar parts which will shine all the way down Interstate 80. Next to the Cramps-esque ‘I’m All Shook Up’ and the beautiful string-tinged album closer ‘I’m A Thief’, you get a real impression of the band’s range.

It seems fit to point out that, while some of the older reference points are there for all to hear, certain sections of the album bring to mind the early work of acts like The Ponys and Here We Go Magic. Which is no bad thing at all. It’s a pretty delightful record for the most part, and while the band are still a few tracks short of having an underground classic in their locker, there’s more than enough depth here to warrant the claim that The Fresh & Onlys are a band to believe in and to follow with interest.