The Vaccines // What Did You Expect From The Vaccines

After Justin Young’s previous project, Jay Jay Pistolet, as an anguished acoustic singer/songwriter, he’s returned with a cough and a bit of a sore throat in the form of The Vaccines.  Despite being a collective for under a year The Vaccines have established a strong stampede of a sound. Narrowly escaping the possibility of looking like a painfully white pair of Sketchers trying to be a pair of  battered and well worn Converses, Young’s raw voice is elevated perfectly by Cowan’s trashy guitar producing exhilarating, intoxicating and succinct songs. “I’m bored – we’re all bored – with the current  climate”  previously stated Young, his contempt and boredom for current music is often expressed in his bare and effortless vocals. But it is this quality which has earned The Vaccines a well deserved place on the critic’s tongues. Breaking free from the synth-happy, soft toned generic indie music it embraces the welcome return of the provocative guitar band which has taken a back seat recently. Initiating the album with the repetitive, chant like 'Wrekin’ Bar (RaRaRa)' the (RaRaRa) seems almost ironic as though they are trying to prove their 'attitude’. But The Vaccines are in their element with vulnerable aggression fueled 'All In White', their downfall? Their need for assurance – “Have you earned your stripes?” seems to be a cry of distress more than a demand.