Albert Hammond Jr. – Francis Trouble

Garage Surprise

Let’s be real here. The first image that comes to mind upon hearing the name “Albert Hammond Jr.” is a cowboy hat-wearing country singer standing behind a pedal steel guitar and telling you, baby, to turn the lights down low. Mostly just because of the “Junior” that reminds of Hank Williams Jr. That being said, color most surprised when the first song, “DvsL” delivers a cheery, jangly classic ’60s rock feel. It’s the kind of irreverent poppy rock that makes Ty Segall so interesting and immediately warms the listener to Hammond’s album, Francis Trouble.

The beauty of ’60s rock that people don’t often mention is that the songs have such a driving pop structure. That’s what makes “DvsL” so successful; the tight, bright, bounciness on top of lo-fi crunchiness. One expects him to stay in this groove for the entire album, but the next two songs, “Far Away Truths” and “Muted Beatings,” give off an entirely different 2000s version of garage rock, akin to The Strokes. The likeness is actually uncanny at some points, with Hammond smoothly crooning atop more staccato riffs. While still interesting and effortlessly motivational to listen to while doing work, the originality points are what are on the mind now.

This trend continues through the next few songs but never does a bad song appear. Hammond has a talent for delivering his hooks with an emotional power that makes you believe what he’s saying. Originality appears even with the murky saxophone solo on “Tea For Two.” Really the only complaints one can levy after getting deeper into the album with “ScreaMER” are that it can skew cliche garage rock sound, but it’s still a helluva sound. Even the comparisons to The Strokes start to fade away during “Rocky’s Late Night,” a song whose infectious groove adds that desired layer of punch with the comparisons to Hammond’s predecessors.

The album closes with less punch than it started with “Harder, Harder, Harder,” skewing back to the Guitar Hero pleasantness, but there’s a certain happiness that shows Hammond really knows what he’s doing. Oh right, rock music can make one happy. What a wonderful reminder!