The Hives – Tyrannosaurus Hives
(Interscope)

It’s been 4 long years since The Hives released “Veni, Vidi, Vicious” and about 2 since it was relaunched in North America to make them a household name, riding a wave of so-called rock revivalism led by bands like The Strokes and The White Stripes. Not soon after, an intense bidding war erupted between record labels vying for their next release, and with legal action on the horizon it seemed we would have to wait at least another year before hearing anything new from The Hives. What a pleasant surprise it is to find that the dust has settled and these Swedish rockers were given a green light to head back to the studio and generate another album of loud and snotty rock anthems.

Tyrannosaurus Hives is exactly that — a collection of frenzied garage rock tunes with authentic 60’s flavour that clocks in at just under 30 minutes. The 90 second “Abra Cadaver” hits hard and fast with the vigor of The Ramones, The Makers and The Stooges all in one. The album continues with a similar breakneck pace from here on… it rarely slows down but it does get more infectious with each and every song.

The album’s first single, “Walk Idiot Walk”, may be the most accessible and fun song they have written to date, With a stabbing Stones-esque guitar riff and a spy surf progression in the verses, plus some handclaps for danceability. Clearly, it’s just what this summer needed, and I for one won’t be annoyed if I have to hear every hip radio station in the world play it to death.

The only real exception to the band’s loud and fast formula is “Diabolic Scheme”, a weird lurching blues ditty accented by screeching violins and Howlin’ Pelle’s drunken-sounding crooning… not to mention one hell of an off-kilter guitar solo.

Some of my personal favourites include “Two-Timing Touch And Broken Bones” and “A Little More For Little You”, both featuring stellar sing-along choruses, the latter with some farfisa organ flourishes to accent the rhythm as well. There really isn’t a bad song in the bunch, and if you like one you should like them all.

The production on this record is what seals the deal, with The Hives making themselves sound the way rock and roll should – dangerous and fun, loud but not overly trashy or needlessly lo-fi. There is not a lot of variety on Tyrannosaurus Hives, but honestly why would you want any? It’s short but sweet, but sounds great on repeat. This one won’t be coming out of your cd player for the rest of the summer, I can pretty much guarantee it. — Sean