Wannadies

AMG Review of Wannadies

Jack Rabid
All Music Guide

It's a mystery, a puzzle, and a curiosity how young Sweden suddenly became de rigueur with the cognoscenti. And though it's the overrated, if respectable, cold-fish Cardigans that used that whimsical focus to make inroads in the U.S., it was this sextet's imports that induced the public's fickle fascination, via their cheeky, cheery "You and Me Song." It's such an infectious and radio-friendly, killer pop tune that in 1995, everyone was singing and grinning along with vocalists Pär Wikstein and Christina Bergmark, to the "It's only you and me always" chorus -- even before the song ended up in a movie too dreck-ridden to merit further mention! That two-year-old hit is the calling card of this U.S. distillation of their two import LPs into one -- boo, hiss, and a butcher sleeve for RCA for that -- but there's more going on in the other 12 songs than mere smiley sugar pop. Instead of teasing with a ossa nova intro as on "You and Me," the best song, "Damn It I Said," oozes that Brazilian influence from the background throughout. Likewise, the Wannadies like to get jaunty, as on the brass and light guitar airy tones of "Oh Yes (It's a Mess)," and the thoughtful "Silent People." Even when ripping off Elastica ripping off Wire on "Friends," they somehow sound like their own uniquely Swedish take. It's too bad nothing else is as immediately pleasing. The group often fall maddeningly short of brilliance, despite their charm, which is troubling given that this LP cherry-picks from two. But with their consistent mix of tougher late-'70s power pop, post-punk, and /p>

ew wave -- with pop-punk thickness in guitars ŕ la the Rezillos, Hypnotized Undertones, the Last, and the Barracudas -- the Wannadies transcend the "gleeful pop-kids having a blast" morass enough to impress.