On The Chewing Gum Ground

Keeping a steady sneer but subtracting angst and teenage romanticism, Wallpaper keep the outlook shiny and appealing. It's all guitars and handclaps. They mix 50s rockabilly and 60s surf with the crucial wave of 80s underground music. The album's allure comes in the juxtaposition of pop sensibilities with lyrics sung like a sliding shimmy, but written with a call for a pop cultural reform. Refreshingly laid back and uncomplicated - just how they want their rock 'n' roll world to be.