(PopFrenzy)

Debut album from jumpy NY popsters

You could be forgiven for expecting a Haight-Ashbury throwback, what with the Jefferson Airplane song title paraphrased in the moniker of this New York outfit. On the contrary, White Rabbits are creators of a nervy, even slightly theatrical, brand of pop music, with ska-inspired rhythms, billowy pianos, wiry guitars and vocals that find a comfortable blend of unhinged and tuneful (like David Byrne morphing into James from The Shins). The pop rush of The Plot and the cruisier Navy Wives provide two of the record’s several highlights. There’s also the tunefully odd Motown bounce of While We Go Dancing and the Bow Wow Wow/Amazulu tribal pop of I Used To Complain Now I Don’t – a song that also shares Vampire Weekend’s mixture of indie and Afrobeat. They even recall vintage Split Enz in March Of The Camels’ nightmarish cabaret. The final result is a distinctive and enjoyable album with some directionless moments, but ultimately liberated by its own giddy, upbeat vision.

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MATT THROWER

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