The Wombats Try To Make You Smile...And Succeed Beautifully

Nothing to despise about The Wombats "Give It a Try". This Liverpool bunch goes heavy on cute in sound and lyric from the very start. Vocalist Matthew Murphy merits the lion's share of the credit for making the song an adorable cheek pinch. His way around keyboards knows no limits. High energy through and through. You want to dive right into the swimming pool he's frolicking in. Why not I say. Time spent with him cavorting is worth any amount of trouble. Ah yes, but there's plenty more to our tale than a pretty face behind a mike stand. Dan Haggis cuts lose with some of the most unburdened drum playing you're likely to hear all year. You sense he's laid the entire hand out on the table. He'll come along for the entire ride or jettison the experience completely. As for the lyrics, levity rules the day. Smiles are mandatory. With such a springy beat to prance across you'll gladly succumb. The third cog in the delightful machine comes in the form of Norwegian born Tord Overland Knudsen. None too shabby on bass. Anyway, back to the lyric sheet. Catch these frothy sentiments. For openers we get, "I know that I like to let excess succeed, but I just need you in that fur coat." Subtlety would not appear to be a factor in any mode whatsoever. Kudos for his determination in the face of a harsh London that would swallow the soul of a lesser creature. The second stanza ratchets up the hilarity factor by leaps and bounds. "We could be gigantic, everything I need. Vicodin on Sunday nights." Better living through chemistry. Always something to consider when you're flat out of options. Some of the personal ablution material gets me guffawing too. Allow me to explain. "I'm shaving with your toothpaste and trying to vacuum from the ceiling." I guarantee that nowhere in your lifetime will you ever hear quite the affable words as are printed here. It is worth considering that there's certainly an off the rocker mental health edge to shaving with toothpaste. Well duh, right? Nevertheless the minty fresh smell on his face cannot be ignored. Certainly beats the standard shaving cream whiff. Moving on I tell you that "Give It a Try" gets drunk on its own lunacy. The inmates in this asylum gambol about with little to no regard for who knows about how silly they are acting. I claim a band with jocularity doesn't go out of style no matter what decade we're winding our way through. The Wombats have been an active outfit since 2003. The sort of whimsy displayed in "Give It a Try" shares the same DNA as the likes of No Doubt's "Running" from that outfit's infectious "Rock Steady" outing. Spontaneity carries the day in both cases. In the former's instance coloring outside the lines spells a heady romp the general public can really take to its collective heart. Afford yourself the opportunity to bask in the trip happy glow of the accompanying lyric video. It'll take the edge off of whatever life drama you're currently battling. It's got daffy imagery sure to light your eyes up and put a dopey grin on your face. Given the current world tumult, isn't this type of creation a pleasant antidote for us as a collective? "Give It a Try" gives us its best. The Wombats have earned the right to attempt a victory lap.