Bloodlights – Simple Pleasures

Say what you will about Norway, but they know how to make exceedingly good rock’n’roll. Perhaps the reason for this is that they believe, deep in their hearts, that sing-a-long choruses, big hair and denim jackets are just plain awesome and this is why Simple Pleasures is such an entertaining listen, even if it is the same sleaze rock that the likes of Turbonegro were touting for years.

There’s a healthy injection of pop sensibility and production nous at work here, from the driving chorus and frankly classic solo of Ultimate High to the rattling bass intro to Just One More. Hell, there’s even a pseudo-ballad included in the shape of Never Built to Last, an inclusion that neither seems gratuitous nor awkward and while there’s not a whole lot of substance to it, if you’re wanting something to listen to while driving around the seedier parts of town in an open-top Chevy then you can’t go wrong with this. [David Bowes]