April 18 2005, the moment of truth for New Zealand band The Mint Chicks. With an unbelievable amount of pressure, a brilliant live show and two top notch EPs behind them, The Mint Chicks released their debut album to the public in of April 2005.
The Mint Chicks
Ruban Nielson - Guitars
Kody Nielson - Vocals
Paul Roper - Drums
Michael Logie - Bass
With two highly acclaimed EPs behind them, people highly anticipated the full length release from the Mint Chicks. With their catchy pop hooks, the punk sounding production, their funky riffs and high vocals that go between indie pop sounds and crazy punk screaming, The Mint Chicks have a sound that is their own. The album that was going to change rock history for ever. The obvious question is; did it? Well, quite honestly, not really. It didn't really hit the high mark that was set for it in the first place. It's easy to forget that these guys are relatively new to this whole music industry thing and to blame them for not releasing the album that everyone demanded of them. But these guys are young and have a big career ahead of them. They are obviously talented and creative, but still have a few things to learn. A popular live band, The Mint Chicks (or The Minties, as native New Zealanders call them) retain a lot of that energy on "F**k the Golden Youth" and harness it in other tracks to make an effective release.
The Mint Chicks know their sound and know it well. They know what works and for the most part, they stick to it. The album includes quite a few new tracks, but old favourites such as "Opium of The People" are used to great effect. A problem that the band seem to have faced with this album (and indeed a lot of bands this year) is that they don't seem to be sure what to put on the album and what to leave off. The album is 13 songs long. In a world where most classic albums rarely exceed 10 songs, "F**k The Golden Youth" just has too many tracks. With the removal of a couple of tracks, the Minties debut could have worked slightly better. But the real issue is a bigger problem than this. The album simply doesn't measure up to the bands EPs and from reports of the band's live shows, it doesn't measure up to those either. The debut has some great instrument work, particularly the drums and guitars which always sound unique. The vocals work extremely well with the music and are pretty much always used effectively. "F**k The Golden Youth" is not a particularly bad album, or even an average one. It's a decent effort from a band who are capable of more. Lets hope that when they get a bit more experience under their belts, they can come out with something a bit more impressive. But until then, enjoy the solid album that "F**k The Golden Youth" is.
Pros
Cool sound
Great instrumental work
Cool production
Cons
Gets boring
They can do better than this
A few filler tracks
Reccomended Tracks
Rubbage Rat
Nothing Is A Switch
Opium Of The People
