The Kooks - Inside In / Inside Out

When a new rock band has the stones to open their first album with an acoustic song, well, they must be pretty confident that the rest of the record will blow you away. And so Inside In/Inside Out by Brighton’s The Kooks does. Maybe it’s youthful exuberance. Maybe it’s the fact that like their debut single, the lads in The Kooks are “Naïve.” Whatever that magical combination is that makes a band special, they have it in spades. Remember the first time you heard Supergrass’s I Should Coco? Yeah, it’s like that. Standout tracks in particular are the driving “You Don’t Love Me,” the deceptively bouncy “Ooh La,” which includes the lyrics “The world just chewed her up and spat her out,” and the aforementioned accusatory “Naïve.” “She Moves In Her Own Way” flatly explains the way things ought to be in a perfect romance “I love her because she moves in her own way / She came to my show just to hear about my day.” Showing more depth are tracks like the decidedly non-poppy and pleading “I want You,” which is still infused with that distinctively thick accent that makes this record sound like nothing else out right now. “If Only” appears to be a straight punk song, but the rhythm of the chorus really shakes things up with an inventive cadence that catches you off guard and then grabs you, pulling you along with the boys in the band. If there are any sour spots, the one that needs mentioning is the oddly-titled “Jackie Big Tits.” It’s not nearly as inventive as the rest of the songs. Unfortunately, I really think everything that follows “If Only” ends up sounding like unnecessary filler. Maybe they should have stopped at track 11? Next time, guys…next time. [www.thekooks.co.uk]