Review Summary: As far as debut outings go, Viva is a strong win.
Viva is a great rock record, and what makes it work, is its simple and effective songwriting with songs that don't overstay their welcome. There is no delusion of grandeur or approachability, Viva is a rock record through-and-through with tasty riffs, vocals that pack a punch and an audible bass packed all over the record, but especially on the records opener ""I'll Play".
The proction of Viva may be nothing to write home about, but the raw production complements the wall of noise that is is present when El Caco goes full throttle like on the closer "I Spill the Water" and "High on a Low".
They may change the formula up ever so slightly on songs like "Oh You" in tempo, vocal delivery and song structure, but this only helps the otherwise quite straight forward record to truck along at a comfortable pace instead of fizzling out. That being said, songs like "Cosmic" and "Blue Zone" could absolutely use some trimming.
As far as debut outings go, Viva is a strong win for the Norwegian stoner rock outfit.
