Art Brut - It's A Bit Complicated

In the wake of post-Libertinism, it's easy to malign Art Brut. Frontman Eddie Argos' affable English dandyism, combined with their jingoistic attachment to inebriated Britpop-aping songsmithery, portrays a band clutching shamelessly to the overly-frayed coat-tails of a once proud Albion army. But to castigate this Deptford quintet as counterfeit parapets of rag-tag jingle-pop is as obtuse as implying Brian Wilson is a poor man's Paul McCartney. New LP It's A Bit Complicated takes all of Bang Bang Rock and Roll's juvenile tomfoolery and adds the sardonic spite of age to its effervescent indie totems. The customary girl-meets-boy-fucks-boy-leaves-boy narrative still lingers in People In Love's wild-eyed oscillations, but a smirking sense of nonchalance fizzes from the jubilant riff of I Will Survive or Direct Hit's thrombosis inducing chorus. A heady concoction of ramshackle pizazz and resplendent melody, It's A Bit Complicated is the record The Libertines wish they'd made. [Billy Hamilton]