Public Access TV - Never Enough

Rating:

The perfect antidote to a sea of mediocre guitar bands.

‘They say the kids don’t like rock and roll anymore’ soothes Public Access TV frontman John Eatherly, but that’s certainly not holding these New Yorkers back on their debut full-length. Surrounded by legends and formidable influences such as The Strokes, Interpol and Yeah Yeah Yeahs - there’s a lot for Public Access TV to live up to. Across ‘Never Enough’, they more than deliver - capturing the essence of youthful abandon into distilled three and a half minute numbers that jump between styles and eras with ease, taking the best parts of the great rock and roll songbook and adapting it into an urgent record for 2016.

The late-70s Bowie stomp of opener ‘In Our Blood’ unveils an album full of uncompromising pop favourites, built over cutting licks and to-the-point highs. And what makes the record such a thrilling listen is the true span of styles and sounds present, harking back to a plethora of eras and refusing to sound pastiched or bland. ‘I Don’t Wanna Live In California’ brings to mind the genre-bending joys of The Clash, whilst ‘Careful’ and its Asbury Park-themed backdrop of crooning keys can make anyone feel like a late-night dreamer no matter where they may be. Across previous singles ‘Patti Peru’, ‘In Love And Alone’ and ‘On Location’ there’s an urgency that seems to be lacking from modern guitar music, instantly hitting the sweet spot between infectious melody and undeniable banger - always sounding fresh and never contrived.

‘Never Enough’ is the perfect antidote to a sea of mediocre guitar bands, showing that rock and roll is well and truly something to care about again. If there’s any justice, it’ll be filling venues and festival fields very soon. Jamie Muir