Various Artists - CaddyOf The Year 4

Thu 25th Nov, 2004 in Music Reviews

There is nothing like a good dose of punk music to kick start summer and Caddy Of The year, Volume 4 will definitely cater for your appetite. The album is a combination of some of the best international and Australian punk acts on the scene at the moment, and if full throttle punk is your cup of tea than there are 20 reasons to check out this little beauty.

The opening track by Vaux, Set It To Blow definitely sets up the stage for the rest of the songs to follow. An emo-styled song that hollers, “This is the Anthem of the year…”  this song has a lot of attitude which hits the listener hard with powerful vocals and riffs that’ll definitely get you moshing up and down.

The next track Alive With The Glory Of Love by Say Anything opens with the line, “When I watch you, wanna do you, right where you’re standing” just like the band’s name suggests they definitely feel they can say anything. Quite a confronting first line, almost discouraging me to listen to the rest of this seemingly cheesy song, but by the end of it I felt like I hadn’t wasted too much time. The song unfortunately is kinda catchy and both the music and the vocals is plausible but with lines like, “With black eye-liner, you look finer” I think the lyrical department might need a little attention.

No strangers to the Australian punk scene After The Fall is up next with their song Raise The Dust. A very nice song when looked at from all angles. Vocals are strong and they haven’t strayed from the traditional punk styled music that has always held its keep. “All I can do, is save myself for you. But all I can say is take one step away” The song is about wanting someone but knowing that you can’t have them because they are bad for you and from past experiences it’s simply not a good idea, hence the notion of ‘raise the dust’ referring to bringing up the past.

Swollen Bottom Lip is the song that Last Years Hero have contributed to the album. Not usually being a fan of these guys this song is actually worth listening to. Opening with a hint of distortion the song breaks into a sound which is very similar to all the punk music coming off the American scene at the moment. If you’re familiar with bands like Good Charlotte, Green Day or A Simple Plan then you’ll have a huge idea of what to expect from Swollen Bottom Lip. Nothing in this song is really groundbreaking but, nevertheless,it is still an okay song to jump along to.

Change Of Face are another standout on the compilation with their song Bite Ya Lip. Lips are a popular feature to sing about in punk songs and with it being held in the title immediately it connotes the song to be about attitude and surely enough it is. Change Of Face are a nicely synched band with solid sounding vocals and once again music that is typically punk and will have you bounding from one planet to another in a matter of moments.

A band that I have found to be much better in the studio than live performances is Kisschasy, and this is no different with their song on the album, Reminder. The vocals are just so much stronger on their recordings rather than live where a completely different sound seems to enter the equation making the band almost unrecognizable. “I fell asleep, I fell in love, I woke up with a brand new scar…” lyrically, vocally and musically this is a really rocking song and I hope that the next time I see this band they sound this good.

The clear highlight for me on this album are the last four songs. It’s really cool when you can sit through heaps of songs thinking they are good and then reach the climax with a whole bunch of songs at the end that are real gems. Starting with a band called Classic Case and their song Down And Out which starts off with really mallow vocals and music, gradually developing attitude to break into full-blown punk. “Well I’ve been down and I’ve been out, from time to time and in between…” This is a really unique punk song displaying experimentation from the band that often is lacking in your typical punk song.

Then there is Something With Numbers and their song Far From A Fairy Tale unquestionably about a relationship that is far from being perfect. Vocally these guys sound a lot like One Dollar Short with a slightly heavier sound to them and I feel this is a positive thing because vocally they come across with a strong, uplifting sound that is really listenable. “12 days of straight out hell…” the song is a bitter reflection on waking up to a relationship that is not what you want or what you planned on having.

Mood In Here is the song by Sans Chevelle and this is the first time I have ever heard anything from these guys and I am very keen on hearing some more because they left a very good first impression. They stray from the conventional punk a little bit introducing some softer vocals juxtaposed with some screams and a breakdown towards the end which is well worth the wait.

The last song on the album is by Brand New and is a bit of mouthful to get around being called, Okay I Believe You But My Tommy Gun Don’t. It is by far my favourite song on the album and is also the longest song running just over five minutes. “I think in decimals and dollars, I am the cause to all your problems…” The verses are done in a talk that sounds a lot like Placebo and it breaks into a chorus that gets everything racing at a heavier, more confronting pace. This song is fairly politically orientated with referrals to war and at the same time it is about having hope and faith in those you love and being able to trust them even though some of the things you can witness through the media might act as a barrier against this. “I just wanna believe, I just wanna believe, I just wanna believe…” All in all quite an epic song that definitely puts a nice end to a fairly solid sounding album from many perspectives.

Caddy of the year 4 is one of the most surprising compilations I have heard all year. Full of many known and not so known punk bands this compilation features some of the best releases in Australian punk for 2004. If punk is your thing or even if it’s not, this is still a pretty decent album to listen to and will definitely put you in the mood for some summer festival action.