Artist: Powderfinger 
   Title: Day Dreams At Hotel Existence
   Label: Dew Process

Anyone out there who likes their brand of rock music on the slightly tamer side than what is classed as ‘the norm’ should check out this album straight away, Powderfingers 6^th release to date, as they deliver a batch of songs here that are un-aggressive on the ear without being boring.

Opener ‘Head Up In The Clouds’ with its slightly echoing vocals, dominant bass lines and what is usually described as ‘jangly’ guitars set the tone for the rest of the album.

In fact, as the next track ‘I Don’t Remember’ gets into full swing, thoughts of the Crowded House ‘Woodface’ era comes to mind, all acoustic and electric guitars in unison, keyboards and classy harmonies, which I must admit certainly isn’t a bad thing to be compared to.

The stand out ballad on the album ‘Wishing On The Same Moon’ is full of subtle guitar work with Bernard Fanning’s heartfelt vocals gracefully accompanying throughout, reminding you of the type of song Mr N. Gallagher has tried to do in the past but just couldn’t come up with lyrically if he tried!

Sometimes you can tell by songs on first hearing, by its sound that a band is possibly from Australia without actually knowing so, and for me track 5 ‘Who Really Cares’ screams out ‘G’day cobber’! It is very much in the Died Pretty vein style due to the use of Darren Middleton’s keyboards and the echoing guitars, as is ‘Long Way To Go’, a song describing the final breakdown of a love affair gone wrong, with the line ‘... cause you’re testing my patience, you don’t belong... ’ more or less straight to the point!

‘Black Tears’ has a very deep south feel to it to begin with due to the acoustic guitar being played the way it is, and the faint touch of keyboards atmospherically adding its message within the song and they’re not the first band from their country to have their say on such a touchy subject. I don’t know if it’s just me, but Bernard fanning sounds a wee bit like Paul Rodgers throughout the song as well.

Personally, track 10 ‘Ballad Of A Dead Man’ is the best song on the album, with the whole sound of the guitars again, the building up of the drums along with the laid back vocals just ooze class before its crescendo into a mid tempo rock song on the lines of early U2, giving another fine example of Australasian music finding its way to these shores.

The final track ‘Drifting Further Away’ might not actually mean to, but sounds as if it’s a blatant nod towards Embrace on a good day and finally the CD ends on this good note.

I can imagine ‘Dream Days …’ being kept in the glove compartment in the car during the summer and being played each time you go for a long drive as its so easy on the ear, and on listening to the album it’s no surprise to me that Powderfinger are selling out dates on their UK tour in December.

Review by Bob Baldwin.

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