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Ode to Ochrasy

by Mando Diao

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You'll surely be forgiven the faux pas of hearing hints of the Libertines in the twin-guitar, twin-vocal attack of Sweden's Mando Diao. They have the mannerisms, the loose raucousness, and the intense focus on melody that marks the combined work of Pete Doherty and Carl Barat--except Mando roughs it up without antagonism, under control but with a blast of hefty motion. Ode to Ochrasy is an on-tour album, documenting the band's 18 months on the road chasing the brilliant Hurricane Bar to every venue imaginable. Here they sound accustomed to the road chaos, taming it with jerking rhythms and chiming guitar interludes, not to mention ample character-driven lyrics where freaks and oddball clubgoers show up. They get barked-at and battered as the band throws two-part harmonies against the stuff of latter-day post-punks: a boozy blast, a smoky-room churn, a downright killer assemblage of riffs and roar. --Andrew Bartlett