The Fratellis
Costello Music

THE REVIEW

The franzferdinian orgy of "Henrietta" opens the debut of yet another "next big thing" launched by the farsighted (sometimes, eh!) English record producers, the The Fratellis. The disc is called "Costello Music", and the awkward comparisons stop immediately in front of the fact that the Costello in question is not the one that immediately jumped to your minds (the one from "She", just to be clear), but rather a character from the movie "Still Crazy".

We've already mentioned "Henrietta", and the album continues by immediately firing the other three hit singles ("Flathead", which lives on the balance between the calm of the verse and the storm of the refrain, the melancholic "Whistle For The Choir" and the well-known and very carefree "Chelsea Dagger" - who doesn't know the now overused chorus "pararà-pararà-pararararararà") and continues by presenting a kaleidoscope of colors and influences so wide and varied as to make the most hyperactive Blur blush (we go from the unlikely head-on collision Damon Albarn/Pete Doherty+Carl Barat of "For The Girl" to the drumming "Creeping Up The Backstairs", which initially crosses Babyshambles latitudes to proceed as a true britpop orgy).

There are some frankly avoidable episodes (the incomprehensible midtempo "Doginabag" which moreover unwarrantedly breaks the rhythm of the album, or "Ole Black'n' Blue Eyes", really too much Graham Coxon), but it is promptly uplifted by truly pleasant and surprisingly vibrant melodies (the American-influenced "Baby Fratelli" is Oscar-worthy).

Blur, Supergrass, Franz Ferdinand, Libertines, Arctic Monkeys, and the list goes on. The flaw is obviously that such a stew of influences and counter-influences can confuse, or at worst even annoy.

So between la-la-la, pararà, and turutù, if you are looking for half an hour of lighthearted and irreverent pop, make yourselves at home with these little Scots (produced by Tony Hoffer - Beck, but also Air and Supergrass, no less-).

Otherwise, steer clear, folks. You risk a serious attack of excessive merriment.