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Wildhearts, The: Chutzpah

Wildhearts, The: Chutzpah

Brit Alt Rock
Rating: 4.0/5.0

Backstage Alliance
www.thewildhearts.com
www.myspace.com/thewildhearts
Review: Craig Hartranft,  09.14.2009

Brit rockers The Wildhearts remain provocative, if only noticeable, for their long turbulent history. Blending, at the start, the angst of late punk and early grunge with Brit rock melodic sensibility, The Wildhearts have demonstrated that they cannot only craft a edgier pop song but can also be humorous and clever at the same time. It seems only fitting that their ninth studio album (eighth with original material) should be called Chutzpah.

Derived from the Hebrew for "insolence", "audacity", or "impertinence", chutzpah suggests the indignation of one who has over-stepped the boundaries of accepted behavior with no shame. In other words, it's a perfect fit for Ginger and company. In more modern usage the term can also have more positive connotations: admiration for non-conformist but gutsy audacity. Again, it all fits The Wildhearts and their history. They do what they want and don't really care who the upset or offend (especially not us crusty music curmudgeons).

So Chutzpah contains ten songs of essentially non-conformist punkish alternative rock with melodic Brit rock flair. Tight and sometimes heavy riffs are effectively counterbalanced by infectious melodies and stirring vocal harmonies (John of Violence). Reminding at times of Green Day remembering The Clash, on You Are Proof That Not All Women Are Insane or Plastic Jebus The Wildhearts exude a brighter and hypnotic noise that rushes past most contemporaries. Yet, then there is Tim Smith which, at first, turns on a modern metal hinge on to be enveloped by softer arrangement. Later, the title track, venturing into prog rock, confuses the modern rock motif even more to our pleasure and the peril of their peers.

Not following current Brit rock trends and not really caring, I believe The Wildhearts and their latest Chutzpah betters the recent blather of Oasis, Cold Play, Super Furry Animals and a host of others you might name. Their delightful melodic arrangements and contagious vocal harmonies blended with their non-conformist audacity put The Wildhearts ahead of their peers.

In Short

Not following current Brit rock trends and not really caring, The Wildhearts and their latest Chutzpah betters the recent blather of Oasis, Cold Play, Super Furry Animals and a host of others you might name. Their delightful melodic arrangements and contagious vocal harmonies blended with their non-conformist audacity put The Wildhearts ahead of their peers.

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