In the Half Japanese documentary The Band That Would Be King, David Fair explains, “it’s pretty easy to play a guitar…once you know the science of it. The high notes – the little skinny ones – make high sounds; the big fat ones make low sounds. And then, if you go on the part of the guitar near where you pluck it, that makes high sounds, and down at the other end [that makes low sounds]– and then you’ve got it mastered. Oh, and if you want to go fast – play fast.†It’s easy to imagine the members of Wallpaper watching this and going “ah, ha! Now let’s start a band!†
Of course I mean that in a good way. On its debut album, Wallpaper keeps things simple, delivering 14 rockin’ tunes with titles like “Pop Rocket†and “Auto Bop†that mash-up 50’s rock and roll, surf-rock and twee. Basically, they sound like what a K Records band should sound like, though sometimes they manage to push that just a little.
Every song on On The Chewing Gum Ground is enjoyable but a couple songs deserve standout status. It’s on these tracks that Wallpaper steps outside its zoop-bob-a-dee-bob comfort zone and gets interesting. “Vertigo Jane†works off of a simple organ riff and has a great minor-key chorus bit but what makes the song exciting are the R2D2-spazz bleeps and bloops that tie the song together. “Totalled,†the album’s best song, finds the band trying its hand at post-punk and pulling it off beautifully. The album then closes with “Rock and Roll World†which borrows it’s drifting sway from the Pixies’ “Where Is My Mindâ€.
Already consistent in terms of both style and quality, songs like the aforementioned (which don’t deviate too far from the album’s dominant sound) push the album from being good to being pretty good. With OTCGG, Wallpaper has created something sweet and sticky that shouldn’t be discarded too quickly.
On Chewing Gum Ground will be available on November 4th on K Records.
Tracklisting:
01. Rock Collage
02. Solar Panel Sleeve
03. Nod Off
04. Pop Rocket
05. Vertigo Jane
06. Shag Carpet
07. New California
08. Auto Bob
09. Bottom Top Blues
10. This Is The Chase
11. Deflated
12. Totalled
13. Total Explosion
14. Rock and Roll World
Written by Marc Z. Grub
