Redd Kross “Beyond The Door”

If there was ever a band who have never got the level of success they deserve (especially in the UK) then it must be Redd Kross. They’re a band who can be considered veterans of the alternative music scene, having started way back in their teens. They’ve also produced some truly brilliant alternative rock albums and possibly the greatest power pop album ever, in the form of “Third Eye”. So….no pressure on this new release!

Thankfully the ‘day tripper’ esque guitars that open up “The Party” are an immediate sign that this is going to be a corker! Something which is confirmed by the rest of that song and tracks like “Fighting” and “Fantastico Roberto”. They’re just brilliant indie rock songs with the perfect balance of power and melody. Many of the songs on this album see the band recapturing the alternative rock perfection that they achieved on Phaseshifter.

Those of us with a love for the more ‘pop’ elements of their sound are also in for a real treat. In fact, they deliver a mid album triple hit of power pop fun. There’s no way you’ll be able to get the glam rock feel of title track “Beyond The Door” out of your brain for weeks. Whilst “There’s No One Like You” is probably the most outright perfect pop they’ve done since the seminal Third Eye. This song should be HUGE! “Ice Cream (Strange And Pleasing)” adds a bit more rock, but it still has the psychedelic Beatles feel of some of their earlier work.

Their last album (Researching The Blues), whilst still great, had a bit more of a darker and intense sound. As suggested by the title and sound of “The Party Underground” there’s just more of a sense of joy with this album. The emphasis on songs like “What’s A Boy To Do” and “Jone Hoople” seems to be firmly back on the big melodies.

We’re obviously huge fans of Redd Kross. So maybe we can be accused of a bit of bias, as we were inevitably bound to like this album. Despite that, we’d still argue that this is one of their best ever releases. It may not quite match the pop brilliance of Third Eye, but it’s possibly their best release since Phaseshifter. If you’ve never experienced the wonder of this band, then you need to get this album NOW and then start buying up all their back catalogue. A brilliant release from an awesome band!