Sailing their ship on familiar waters
The initial rise of Teeside trio Dartz! Was a rapid one. Forming in 2005 they made real inroads on the small venue circuit and received numerous plaudits, culminating with Xtramile signing them back in June of last year. Part two of their progression saw them being tipped as a band to watch in 2007, with the first tasters of their debut album being issued to an increasingly expectant and growing audience.
Dartz! Make a noise that fits in perfectly with what seems to be getting the music press and alternative music fans excited right now. In ya face guitar rifts and catchy, sometimes shouty vocals played over pounding drums, that gives every track the foundation which could see it become an indie dancefloor favourite in future months. 'A Simple Hypothetical' is the perfect example of this, as it is at times reminiscent of Bloc Party. 'Prego Triangolos' has a funky guitar intro and a shouty chorus that has the appeal which could see it become addictive in a way that, when walking round festival sites you'll hear groups of pissed people shouting it with similar enthusiasm that led to Fratellis and Automatic tracks taking off in 2006.
One of the album's highpoints is the interesting guitar work, not something you would necessarily expect to read about this kind of record. It's not always complicated and doesn't need to be, 'Laser Eyers' has a guitar intro that puts Libertines 'Don't Look Back Into The Sun' into the mind.
It's not often that indie bands such as Dartz! really go for the guitar solos and they make a welcome addition. In truth without them this would be a fairly average set of songs. Take many tracks as stand-alone singles and the appeal is unquestionable; this is an LP that oozes energy throughout. Put them all on one CD and by the time you're reaching the album's climax the mind does start to wander, yearning for something a little different.
This is far from being a bad record, there is an infectious, catchy charm about tracks like 'Network, Network, Network', 'Once, twice, again!', 'Harbour' and forth-coming single 'Fantastic Apparatus' that suggests a night out at a Dartz! gig would be far from dull. The problem is that with so many bands around making similar sounding music, it's not unreasonable to listen to new and emerging bands and ask the question, what are they bringing that stands out? The downside of this Dartz! album is that it's hard to put a watertight case for it being anything we haven't heard before somewhere, or at least that holds it's own against the indie heavyweights of 2007.