4/5 stars
Melbourne soul/funk band The Bamboos and the inimitable Tim Rogers have already had one successful partnership with the 2012 single, ‘I Got Burned’. Fast-forward a few years and they’ve collaborated on an album.
It’s one that achieves a balance between the band’s patent introverted groove and Rogers’ effervescent rock’n’swagger from You Am I. The result is something that sounds varied (in the best possible way), fresh and brimming with enthusiasm.
Rogers himself believes the record sounds like a mix of The Jackson 5 and Eric Burdon’s War, while Lance Ferguson wanted to write a Bamboos song that sounded like The Police. In reality these 12 songs and four demos share those musical touchpoints and a whole lot more from the ’60s. In essence, it’s about complex and exciting pop music that can make you tap your feet and nod along like you know it all already.
The Rules Of Attraction is upbeat and joyous, showing some Australian musical darlings simply plugging in and having a ball. They trade riffs, grooves and ideas and create a cool, retro sound with a contemporary bite. It’s tight, a little cheeky and dapper as hell.
