On their sophomore LP Glazin', Miami's Jacuzzi Boys exhibit no signs of slumping. If anything, the group is entering its prime. Everything that was great about previous album No Seasons is here, with an extra coat of semi-gloss: wild guitars, big hooks, and most importantly, audible smiles.
Overall, the pace is slower and the songs are slightly longer. The result is an album that feels like a road trip on a three-day weekend, replete with detours, sunburns, and alligator barbecues.
Opener "Vizcaya," an ode to the Boys' favorite Metrorail station,
is a foot-stomping rocker with unadorned lyrics. There's no need for
fanciness, anyways -- this is about rocking and having a good time in the South
Florida sun. (They love the Vizcaya station because it brings them
together so they can rock on Key Biscayne -- without that Metro stop there'd
be no Glazin'!)
As a whole the album flows really well, ranging from Gun Club-type swamp rock to gloriously glamorous Marc Bolan-inspired rippers. The title track is power pop perfection; the amazing officially unofficial video for it distracts from its sweet melodies. On "Silver Sphere" the trip starts getting a little too real, and lot heavier. "Los Angeles" is kick-ass tribute to California. Yes, we're a little jealous that they haven't penned a song for Oakland Park or Hialeah yet.
"Crush" is probably the best song by the JBs to date. It's got elements of the Beach Boys, the Jesus and Mary Chain, the Ramones, the Cars, and a twitch of Joy Division. The dueling Moog and Telecaster solo halfway through the song takes the listener into frontman Gabriel Alcala's smitten heart. Alcala's transparent lyrics, Diego Montasario's tom fills, and Danny Gonzalez's pulsing bassline on this song remind us how exhilarating new love can be -- and entire record reminds us how exhilarating rock and roll should be.
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