The Go! Team - Rolling Blackouts

Many bands have failed to innovate. Attempting to piggyback alternative genres in favour of modifying that which their fans love them for has caused many a critical and commercial downfall. With their third album, ‘Rolling Blackouts’, unneccesary change is definitely not a problem for Brighton sextet The Go! Team, whose inimitable style and excellence in the genre of credible, upbeat pop music is something that deserves as much exposure as possible. What’s more, it could be argued that this is the best work the band have recorded to date.

The album works infinitely better as a whole unit, rather than examining each song individually. Much like a mixtape, it’s designed as a demonstration of a particular style, building up and fading perfectly over the course of it’s runtime of just over 40 minutes. There are a few standouts however: anthemic, brass-backed dance instrumental ‘Bust-Out Brigade’ slots in the middle, acting as a peak for the feverish good vibes that build up over the first half of the record. This is followed by another great song, fully deserving of being a party anthem this summer, ‘Buy Nothing Day’. Featuring the cheerful, sing-song vocals that form part of The Go! Team’s unique sound, it lacks aggressiveness but that’s not the aim; as sheer bubblegum cheer, it works perfectly. After this emotional highpoint, the album slowly calms down to it’s eventual conclusion. ‘Lazy Poltergeist’ is the album’s final highlight, a simple, cute piano piece with no vocals, no high intentions, acting as a nice stopgap between the bulk of the album and the final one-two punch that closes off the record, ‘Rolling Blackouts’ and ‘Back Like 8-Track’.

It is here though that the album’s downpoints can be found. Whilst their style is fun to listen to, and great to dance to, by the close you might find yourself suffering from exhaustion and headaches. If you’re in the wrong mood, or have been listening for too long, the band’s upbeat outlook can easily be mistaken for irritating chirpiness. The band have never done an album this long before. Whilst forty minutes may not be overly-long for most musicians, The Go! Team are definitely best listened to in quick bursts, and as the two closers mentioned above aren’t exactly their best tracks, one can’t help but think ‘Rolling Blackouts’ may have been better simply ending before the title track.

But, bar the album outstaying it’s welcome, it is definitely a tour-de-force: if you’re in a good mood this summer and want a few party anthems, there’s nowhere better to look than ‘Rolling Blackouts’.