Review: Maximo Park - A Certain Trigger CD

Another in a growing line of retro-asexual-new wave-dance bands, Newcastle's Maximo Park add a mod sound and energy to the mix, offering a fuzzy yet invigorating set of songs that demand to be played loud. The opening track, "Signal and Sign", starts at a low volume as if to trick you to crank it up. I like this disc especially because I'm a sucker for a clever wall of noise chord progression and cheesy farfisa organ sound. Maximo Park combine the two and had me at hello.

A Certain Trigger sounds like The Cure meets The Jam, with what sounds to me like a Scottish singer. Many of the songs generate new energies within themselves, a rare talent I've come across in bands such as The Lazy Cowgirls and Space Cookie. Most of the notes I wrote while listening to this came down to "great song".

Maximo Park are like The Futureheads and Bloc Party but rougher around the edges, which is a nice niche to scratch.