LOLAS
Ballerina Breakout (Jam Recording)
Reviewed by Erick Mertz

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Pop this fun should be a misdemeanor - check that, it should be a downright felony. There are few riffs or refrains on Lola's new album Ballerina Breakout that aren't rife with either doe eyed optimism or heart wrenching nostalgia.

Think of a cheekier Teenage Fanclub - the Stone Roses on an unrepentant sugar high.

At first the Anime styled cover art had me skeptical, but after actually eschewing the idea of reviewing Ballerina Breakout entirely on the relative merits or demerits of its cover art and putting it into the CD player, it's grown on me. Growing I said, alright. Normally I'm more inclined to rave about decent cynical post punk indie pop and therefore I find the inclination to like the Lolas strange. Its unusual to say that they sound like good enough kids and not be sarcastic, but their harmonies are excellent and song structure are infectious.

Somewhere along the line Tim Boykin, Bryan Price and Jesse Diego Suttle need to thank the pioneers of 60's surf rock and British invasion but not before they come down from their charm fest at Willy Wonka's factory. Doses of Ballerina Breakout can be substituted for Prozac.

[Pick this up at www.allindiemusic.com.]

© 2003 - Erick Mertz