To put it simply, Real Dancing is real good. This debut record from Auckland indie/dance-rock revivalists Racing is full of foot-stomping guitar riffage, toe-tapping dance grooves and more than its fair share of cool rock 'n' roll swagger.
Throughout, the band, which houses two ex-Checks in vocalist Ed Knowles and guitar supremo Sven Pettersen, cherry-pick styles and influence. They effortlessly breeze through heavy, head-nodding, riffs (Motel Pool, Run Wild), indie-dance bangers (Electric Honey, Party Slow), and even hard-grooving, pop numbers (Misbehaving, Devil's Work without missing a beat.
Disparate, yes, but once filtered through the band's sensibility, it all comes together cohesively. They may be riffling through the classic sounds of the past but they're very much repurposing them for the now.
The driving Drugs and Affection, all frantic bass, synth plucks and 80s funk guitar, is ready to explode on the dancefloor, the propulsive, percussive swagger of Move Your Body sees the band dropping some mint prog flourish alongside the Mick Jagger flout, while the jaunty Blue Gloom harks back to the mid-naughts garage-rock revival but pairs it with the sort of soaring falsetto chorus that Jungle would be proud of.
