Officer Kicks - The Six Grand Plot

Redemption Records

September 4, 2008, 04:57 PM

It’s not very often that an album is named after something which happened during recording, usually the idea is set out in stone before even the first drum beat is recorded. However, Officer Kicks spend in the region of £6,000 recording this album according to their website, hence the name ‘The Six Grand Plot.’ Despite the expense, there’s still a very raw feel to this band, almost like an unpolished gem, however, you get the feeling this is intentionally done.

The sound they have overall isn’t really anything new, neither is it especially anything old/over-saturated/over-done, they’ve got a very defined sound and they stick at it throughout and as a result have made a very strong debut album. It’s hard to comprehend that this band started out life in 2005 and by the end of that same year were in the studio making this album. The tightness and unity, and most of all, identity they developed in such a short space of time is testament to what can be done with the right sort of determination and drive.

They’ve made a great sounding record, both in terms of melody and dynamic qualities. For this you do have to wait a while, opener ‘Dirty Sally’ doesn’t really reflect the overall theme of the album, but instead goes straight into the more extreme end of the spectrum, riff wise it almost sounds like an American heavy rock song. There’s a mix of rock and indie influences going on and it’s easy to see why this band have carved out their own sound and developed their own identity. Songs that stand out, amongst others are ‘Bunny Boiler’, ‘Pictures of Me’ and ‘Love Your Man’, any of which could be singles. There’s also a great acoustic song, ‘Love After Death’ which adds a really nice balance into the mix.

This is an album definitely worth checking out. Officer Kicks have finally arrived and they’ve come out with some top class songs. Granted, it’s not the best thing you’ve ever heard but this is a very solid debut album from what seems to be one of the most down to earth bands around. This album is certainly good enough for them to make their six grand back, so be sure to check it out and ensure these guys didn’t make all the effort for nothing.