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Black And White Album

by The Hives

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Though the garage-rock boom of the early '00s has long since passed, Sweden's The Hives are among the few to have survived the hype and continued playing their brand of rough, howlin' rock. The quintet has actually found a nice middle ground over the seven years since 2000's Veni Vidi Vicious, gaining respectable appreciation in the U.S. without breaking out huge like it seemed they might. By the sound of The Black And White Album however, they’re not content with that.

Broader, more adventurous, and sporting production credits from Modest Mouse collaborator Dennis Herring and The Neptunes' Pharrell Williams, Black and White is the band’s most nakedly ambitious release. At least half of the record is among their best work to date; lead track "Tick Tock Boom," for instance, is an absolute gas, full of exuberant stomp and rowdy glam. As the record progresses, so too does the experimentation. "T.H.E.H.I.V.E.S." drives their stripped-down rock into new wave territory, like Queen once did on "Another One Bites the Dust" (except Queen pulled it off). Some songs, like the quirky, borderline-ridiculous "Giddy Up!" go off the deep end completely. But like everything The Hives do, the album is interesting even at its worst--and totally fantastic at its best. -–Matthew Cooke