Young Guv & The Scuzz: A Love Too Strong

Southpaw

Guitarist Ben Cook’s job with prog-punk stars Fucked Up is to bring the melodies to Damian Abraham’s hard-hitting extravaganzas. In the process he’s evolved a shimmering, sparkling, incredibly fluid and exuberant style of lead guitar and this action-packed throwdown is all about that.

In six songs under 22 minutes, Cooks makes a strong case for cleverly constructed, forceful, squeaky clean and loud power pop, ably assisted by top-flight production work. At certain points influences come through loud and clear but at no point do they ever overwhelm a track or obscure Cook’s signature sound. Or his way with a flurry of hooks, as on “Heal In Time” and “I Am The Rogue”.

There’s not a dog in the lot nor a single wasted or stepped on note and at the end, one of few albums recently heard that genuinely left a body wanting for more. Oh yeah, responsible for that in a big way, the amazing work of sound engineer Steve Chahley, a name we’ll be hearing more of sooner rather than later.

Lenny Stoute