Album Review: The Vietnam War, The Vietnam War

The Vietnam War. Photo / Supplied

Auckland band The Vietnam War have been building momentum for a good five years, so it doesn't come as a surprise that their debut album sounds anything but amateur. In fact, it sounds like a treasured, dusty recording salvaged from a country enthusiast's collection, and turned up loud for nostalgia's sake.

Led by deadpan vocalist Lubin Raines, with Saan Barrett, Matthew Short, Kristal Gallagher and Kari Hammond driving the rhythm, the band produces clean, unobtrusive but also aching melodies topped with wry lyrics that seem to gently prod at old but deep wounds. Their name evokes a period of big Western ideals and a peace campaign and this group seems most inspired by the latter, in a dusty rock'n'roll kind of way. There's no evangelising. Instead, Raines' measured drawl takes his listeners down wide stretches of beautiful monotony, punctuated by passionate dark outbursts of self-deprecation or borderline paranoia.

"You're my last years, I'm your wasted time," he yearns, in Heavy on My Mind. But he never quavers, or lets his blood run hot. The melody holds the emotion, while Raines holds his resolve. Buoyed by a laid-back country swagger, the album lolls about in minor key ballads and manages to wallow in melancholy, then jumps around playing cowboys and Indians. The result is a classic, vintage album with a long, impressive lifespan.

Stars: 4/5
Verdict: Good things take time

- TimeOut