Often lacking depth.
The Concretes are never short of an extra pair of hands when they're working – the Swedish indie pop band currently have eight members as well as an assortment of 'Honorary Concretes' who occasionally contribute to tracks. 'Oh Boy' is taken from their latest album 'Hey Trouble', and Brits will get a chance to see them play in several festivals across the country during this summer.
Coming in at under three minutes, 'Oh Boy' leaps into your eyes with the energy of a hundred lollipops and a two litre bottle of orangeade. Its chorus is an almost irritatingly cheerful party of diverse instruments from horns to electro drum beats, all overlaid with Victoria Bergsman's pure pop vocals. 'The Sentence' is a more downbeat offering, although still sugar-heavy. It may appeal to pop fans but those on the indie side who are accustomed to emotion being raw and real may be somewhat disappointed by it.
Two versions of 'Kids', a track from an earlier limited edition single, follow. The first, 'Ed's Kids' (recorded in London with Ed Hardcourt) is affective and emotive, defined by a delicate piano backdrop that frames the song's vocals (here Victoria is accompanied by Ed Hardcourt himself and Lisa Milberg) perfectly and is without a doubt the strongest track on the release. Full marks to all concerned in both versions for 'Justin's Kids' managing to be entirely different to 'Ed's Kids', this time the vocals and melody shimmy along the dancefloor, and although the track isn't as emotive as 'Ed's Kids' by a long shot as a it does succeed in making the listener want to dance!