49. The Magic Numbers- The Magic Numbers


Boy, did the hype surrounding this one hit the shores of Australia well before any note of music was heard! So the question immediately became from "How does this one sound" to "Does it live up to the hype?" So many times that hangs like a millstone around the necks of many new bands as it unfairly heightens the threshold for criticism.
The Magic Numbers' main weapon to combat that is their irresistible charm and a sunny disposition in their songs. You're either susceptible for that or find them too lightweight which means you'd bypass them but wouldn't blame them for being the way they are. It's friendly, sixties-harmonic music without being (too) twee. So does it have enough hooks to hang up your musical hat onto? Perhaps not enough. What it does is set itself off against many contemporaries who use sixties folk to a freeform that want to challenge the standard but didn't hook me at all (Devendra Banheart, Cocorosie, Joanna Newsom) but envelop you with a warm and friendly sound. Discussing the various tracks doesn't matter. Only gripe would be about singer Romeo Stodart's sleepy vocals getting a bit too formulaic but in this hot Aussie summer it's the vibe that's the most prevalent here anyway.