thanks to Jim
AllMusic Review by Stewart Mason
The first album by the Dutch pop quartet Johan
didn't make a lot of noise outside the Netherlands, which is a shame
because its mix of indie-guitar nervousness, power pop hooks, and
retro-pop sophistication is absolutely terrific. Singer-guitarist Jacco
de Greeuw sings the instantly catchy tunes in flawless unaccented
English, in accordance with the grand Europop tradition, and lead
guitarist Remco Krull fills the songs with just-so one-note solos and
Wedding Present-style strummy riffs. The songs, all originals with the
odd and unexpectedly perfect exception of a suitably psychedelic cover
of Aphrodite's Child's "It's Five O'Clock," are uniformly solid, and the
simple, straightforward production keeps things relatively unadorned,
with the exception of a moody cello on "Swing" and layered, breathy
overdubbed harmonies on the trippy "Life on Mars" (not the Bowie song).
An unpretentious debut with few weaknesses.
Tracklist
| 1 | Everybody Knows | 3:23 |
| 2 | Not Funny Anymore (It's) | 2:37 |
| 3 | Back In School | 2:19 |
| 4 | Payment | 3:15 |
| 5 | 5 O'Clock (It's) | 4:35 |
| 6 | Easy (It's) | 3:09 |
| 7 | Suffer Baby | 3:14 |
| 8 | Life On Mars | 3:10 |
| 9 | December | 3:02 |
| 10 | Porneaux | 3:49 |
| 11 | Swing | 4:05 |
| 12 | He's Not There | 3:41 |
| 13 | Brown Mice | 7:24 |
