There are a few things you should know about Glaswegian three-piece The Fratellis. No, they are NOT named after the crooked family from The Goonies; no, they are NOT related; yes, they really ARE that ugly. And most importantly, yes, based on this album, they ARE worthy of the hype currently surrounding them. Costello Music - Jon, Barry (Fratelli, hence the pseudonym) and Mince's debut incursion into indie infamy, is a high-dose blast of rambunctious indie-rock that's far from avant-garde, yet thoroughly pleasurable nonetheless. Production genius Tony Hoffer has turned his attentions to yet another young British band with the same svelte results; charming, audacious songs written by a band who've made a name for themselves seemingly without any assisting record label ballyhoo. It's obvious from the moment opening track (and album standout) Henrietta kicks off, that The Fratellis subscribe to the same school of thought as The Libertines and their ilk; and their self-deprecating humour and lyrical content is similar to the London urchins ('Henrietta, we got no flowers for you/Just these three miserable c*nts sitting on the back seat').Musically, they're an Irn Bru of breezy Cribs-meets-Gomez-meets-T Rex, often incorporating a sense of juvenile euphoria into their sound. Flathead's handclap beat, gloriously sharp backing vocals and almost slapstick ambience make it a contender to soundtrack a remake of 'On the Buses', if ever there was one; the brilliant Creepin' Up the Backstairs is a vocally and musically frenetic crowd-pleaser, and the superb Chelsea Dagger is a lairy, glam-tinged galumph. When they're not inciting mass hysteria amongst teensters, though, they can turn their hand to fetchingly gentle acoustic singalongs (Whistle for the Choir), bluesy downtempo drawls (Doginabag) and sparse mid-track interludes (as heard on the edgy Arctic Monkeys-esque Got Ma Nuts From A Hippy).You'll have heard it all before, but rarely with such charisma, vibrancy or sheer enthusiasm. They may be three miserable c*nts, but they're three bloody talented miserable c*nts. Just don't mention The Goonies.
