Powderfinger Vulture Street Release Date (for Canada): April 13, 2004 Label: Universal Rating: Andy doesn't dig rating stuff. Australian rockers Powderfinger didn't release their latest disc in Canada until a good nine months after it was released in their native country. Why the wait? Who knows. If I were to conjure up one word to describe this album though, it would be this : funrock. No, that's not a real word. Did I say it would be? Certainly the first thing I noticed about this disc as I shredded the cellophane off of it, was the design and format of the packaging. They even included a sticker on the front to inform people that this is not and SACD or something of that nature. This thing is housed in a super-swanky tray that opens differently and feels different from a standard jewel case. It makes the thing feel rich right off the bat. Striking cover image too (see above… Judge for yourself). The music, coming in at just under 45 minutes, is mmmmsexy, blues-tinted rock and roll. The feel-good vibes from their earlier Odyssey Number Five disc have carried over, but again, gotten far bluesier than their previous poppy ways. It's not hard to see why this band is so popular amongst its home crowd, having enormous crossover potential. They rock enough for the kids… but not so hard that they'd be out of place on 'adult' radio stations. The disc opener, "Rockin' Rocks," starts up hard and fast after a brief fuzzy intro. It's a cool-sounding song, no matter how terrible the title of it is. The second track, "(Baby I've Got You) On My Mind" is super-sexy, with anthemic guitars and a sly vocal melody. "Since You've Been Gone" completely breaks into slow, sultry blues and showcases singer Bernard Fanning's peppery range. Songs like "Sunsets" bring the tempo down a bit and, kind of following suit with some of the lyrics, feel like lying around on a lazy summer day on a beach. "How Far Have We Come" also brings the mood right down, being very acoustic, but still bluesy. Dancing in a gazebo. The whole album ends with an odd tune, "A Song Called Everything." The guitars sound like the song should be louder than the vocals indicate. There's a lot of reverb on the vocals, and the whole thing sounds the most 'inspirational' of anything else on the disc. There's a few tracks in the middle that the album could probably do without, like the filler-y "Don't Panic" and the out-of-place "Stumblin.'" "Roll Right By You" is a bit dull throughout, aside from a cool, but brief, guitar riff in the chorus. But by and large, we've got a pretty solid collection of songs here that are a good convertible-driving-down-the-highway soundtrack. Lyric of choice : From "Don't Panic" (this is a bit corny, but it sounds so fun when it's yapped out) : Big fat payback / bleeding like a smokestack / I'm running / we got a dud pump speed bump / burning like a fuel dump. But for sheer prettiness, It's not such a beautiful day / I'll stumble through all the same / The bright lights are fading away / It's not such a beautiful day from "Stumblin'" or Salvage what you need / I'll take the love that you leave from "Love Your Way." Song of choice : Track 10, "Pockets." The first listen-through the disc, I wasn't paying close attention to where tracks began and ended, and I thought that this was two separate tunes. It begins very mellow and slow, soft, charming, lovely. Beautiful, rolling vocals behind a sweet and simple guitar melody. Around the three-minute mark, it flows into understated feedback and effects and then explodes into this snarling, loud, rocker that threw me completely off guard. I love surprises in music. Wonderful! -Andy Scheffler Elsewhere Powderfinger website Published : June 8, 2004.