Shaka Rock By Jet

Australian rock and roll band Jet’s new album “Shaka Rock” is a throwback to the ragged, rabble-rousing rock music of old. The five-piece band’s third record, Shaka Rock seems to be more extroverted than their last effort – 2006’s “Shine On” and brings back the good vibes of the band’s debut, 2003’s “Get Born.”

The album opens on a high point with “K.I.A” (Killed In Action), a loud and electric track on which vocalist Nic Cester oozes attitude about being forward and fearless in love. The first single off the record, “She’s A Genius,” follows the same rocking set up, but here the catchy chorus is even better, propelling the song along at a dynamic rate. Somewhere towards the end of the record, “Start The Show” carries a similar sound to these two tracks.

But luckily the album isn’t all drawls and electric growls. On “Goodbye Hollywood” and “She Holds A Grudge” the band shows a softer side of their music with these introspective, almost melancholic tunes that slow the rock and roll right down.

And on “Seventeen” they evoke an effective ‘80s vibe that opens with plastic piano beats accompanied by echoing vocals. This rhythmic song wouldn’t be out of place on a movie soundtrack from your youth.

Jet also channels the best of Britpop on songs like “Don’t Let Me Down” where they sound similar to Oasis on a good day (when the Gallagher brothers are not drunk on stage, that is) and it closes off the thirteen-track album excellently.

Overall, “Shaka Rock” doesn’t break too much new ground on Jet’s musical path as it’s fairly reminiscent of what we’ve heard from these Aussies before. But it carries a rock and roll spirit that a lot of albums lack these days, which means listening to it will give you a good time, spin after spin.