Tokyo Police Club - Champ

Champ is the third long player from Toronto indie-popsters Tokyo Police Club. As David Monks sings on 'Breakneck Speed' (and again on closing track 'Frankenstein') "It's good to be back", and it's good to have them back too. Since bursting on to the scene in 2007 with their much-hyped debut A Lesson in Crime, Tokyo Police Club have cut a swathe through the indie scene, filled with catchy guitar hooks, and quirky singalong choruses. It's not complicated, not particularly sophisticated, the band stick pretty strictly to the three minute per song rule on Champ, but none of that is necessarily a bad thing.

High Points

'Wait Up (Boots of Danger)' is a bouncy little number, typical of the album with it's oft-repeated chorus, and upbeat "oooh-oooh-oooh" backing vocals. The playful subject matter, and the repetition present in most of these songs give them a throwaway feel, as if they were written in a matter of minutes, recorded immediately and then forgotten as the band move on to the next one.

The shortest track on the album 'Bambi' is the next one on this occasion, with its angular synthy sounds it stands out slightly from the rest of this guitar-heavy album. A stand out track for another reason though is 'Not Sick' a short sharp blast of high-energy punk, which surpasses everything else on the album. It could almost be mistaken for early Green Day, in its simple vibrant tunefulness and visceral power.

The Verdict

At it's best Champ is a vital experience, there are moments of brilliance in there that have to be heard. But at this stage in Tokyo Police Club's career the execution is too casual, too many tracks seem lightweight, transient, almost passing the listener by. That's not to say that they are bad, but there is a sense of frustration that the band are capable of so much more.

Final Score: 64%