Canberra guitar band The Feldons, based on the core songwriting duo of Mark Hunstone and James Montgomery, has seen a few line-up changes since its 2006 formation. However, it has remained unashamedly classic Brit pop in style, even having the London Underground sign as the basis for the band logo. Human Graffiti, The Feldons’ third LP in seven years, sees the folk influences of the Goody Hallett and Other Stories album left behind for a more poppy, up tempo collection of songs.
This album is full of catchy, bright foot tappers. Some of The Feldons’ best songs revolve around riff based material, including opener ‘Good Old Days’ and the standout track ‘Feeling Fine’. ‘Squeaky Shoe’ caries the urban swing of Melbourne band Even and while ‘Perfection’ begins with a sound reminiscent of ‘Smells Like Teen Spirit’, the similarity begins and ends there as the rest is all vintage britpop. There’s a glimpse of psychedelica in the tambourine shaker ‘Guns and Knives’, while ‘Load’ takes a ‘70s rock path, with standout guitar work against a crooning bass.
While the title track is the catchiest song on the disk, the album highlight comes when the band makes a leap to another era, with the garage-punk Doc Martens stomper ‘Stop That’.
The ‘60s style of the music isn’t always matched by the romantic, innocent lyrics which characterised that era, with the graphic “Drank it all ‘til she threw up” in ‘Wastelands’ or double meanings such as “In the backseat, won’t you give me a hand” in ‘Outside’. However, the lyrics are of secondary importance in this album, as it’s the bright hooks and effervescent guitar passages that pack the most punch.
