Big Wheel

AMG Review of Big Wheel

Kelvin Hayes
All Music Guide

This was Iva Davies return from courtroom hell with former label Chrysalis. Someone should annoy Davies more often, because the result is the most energizing, electric music of his career. From their opener, Icehouse -- essentially the trio of Davies, Paul Wheeler, and David Chapman -- treat us to a frenzy of guitars, loops, filmic links, and drumming likened to John Bonham. Though lyrically weak, the title song bounces along in jolly mode. Bowie affiliations come again in the form of "Satelite" and "Stolen Guitar." "Judas" and "Cadillac" are more stodgy but still rock; the latter is similar to the more recent Suede material. The album initially came with a computer disc -- the first interactive disc in Australian rock history -- while others came as standard with the Spin One EP attached, which leads nicely to its parent album.