Officer Kicks is KEITH WICKHAM (drum), MICHAEL SKORJANEC (bass), JAMIE SCALLION (vocal), JAMIE FISHER (guitar). This young Brit band has built a solid live performance reputation performing their classic heavy rock style music. This is the band’s second album due for release on the 19th April and from what I’ve heard, it’s an album worth waiting for.

A speeding bullet ‘Murderland’ opens this collection, along with a powerhouse rhythm, relentless country guitar riffs, monster melody, and a do-or-die vocal from Scallion. Great opener! ‘Le It learn’ treads a similar path while ‘Kraken’ ups the stakes with distinct punk vibe and bass guitar riffs that take this song to another place. It fairly races along with the strongest melody so far and just has to be a single release contender. A single, soaring guitar riff introduces ‘Control Sick’ before the vocal enters and the song takes on a jagged vibe, along with choruses that will have everybody singing along at concerts. Punk style backing vocals add spice and more telling guitar riffs up the drama stakes. This is a standout, no question.

‘Citywide Curfew’ is a blues-rocker with improvised drum beats, jangling guitar riffs and bass providing a rock-steady rhythm - a top song. ‘Box Of Dust’ is a slower and calmer semi-acoustic song tinged with an alt-country/folk vibe, and is a welcome slice of beautiful diversity. ‘Tom Thumb’ is a pumping rocker with a strong dance beat and some crazy retro guitar riffs. ‘Hold That Magic’ is blessed with pop sensibility as it takes a more indie rock route. ‘Automatic’ is an intriguing cross between Oasis and Shelby Lynne that works. ‘Mrs Anderson’ is a slower, contemplative song that builds to memorable rocky choruses. ‘White Heat’ concludes the album on a haunting and moving note as a piano rings out in an acoustic song that’s just about as beautiful as it gets.

This album is overflowing with good songs, strong performances, great melodies underpinned by honesty and simplicity - there’s nothing too clever or tricky here. In fact you could close your eyes and use a pin to select a song for airplay, and be guaranteed to play top quality, super-accessible music. An excellent album from a band that I cannot wait to see perform live.

4/5

Biography

Hailing from South East London this gang have played music together since their mid teens. The definitive line up became Officer Kicks at the end of 2005.

Fiercely independent, O.K are one of the hardest working bands in Britain today and certainly one of the most exciting. They record, play and write on their own terms and have worked with some of the best producers in some of the best studios, largely courtesy of their magnetic charm.

The belief in the songs and live performance has drawn both critical and personal acclaim from all quarters. After two years creating their first album, touring UK and abroad to hone their live show and winning the seeds of a following. ‘Dog Day Rush’ (”the credit crunch anthem”) was a fitting DIY introduction to Officer Kicks released at the end of 2007.

They had already played shows with Jack Penate, The Couteeners, Nine Black Alps, The Holloways, Lethal Bizzle, Club NME dates the View and more.

2008 got even busier with the release of the single, ‘Pictures Of Me’, and the album, THE SIX GRAND PLOT in the summer, they became real contenders. Despite being unsigned and without a booking agent they pulled off national radio play and press, slots at Glastonbury, Bestival and The Secret Garden Party plus some amazing reactions. They signed to independent label, We Make Things and also got a distribution deal in Japan.

After rounding off the year at In The City, the UK’s music industry convention, they found themselves invited back to Manchester a week later at the request of The Hoosiers, who had caught them live. Officer Kicks made a triumphant appearance supporting at The Apollo - their biggest indoor set to date then got the same amazing reactions around the country on the road with them. If you want your audience warmed up…

Since the first LP was released, the live show was a mix of tunes from THE SIX GRAND PLOT and new songs for the second album. They ended the year creating a rock masterpiece, CITYWIDE CURFEW in Soho’s Dean Street Studios.

It’s not due for release until April 2010 but has already done them even more favours pre-release, making 2009 the most exciting for Officer Kicks yet, from playing Sweden’s biggest festival, Peace & Love (on the same bill as Motley Crue whose roadies plied OK with spirits at the hotel), to supporting Jarvis Cocker on the main stage of Secret Garden Party.

In August they played their first in-store set at Carnaby Street’s flagship store, Merc then later that evening headlining The Borderline, three nights at the Harley Davidson Rock Festival (back by request) in Austria and a debut tour of Ireland supporting The Script, that found them a whole new following to swell the Kicks Army. They’d also been a Q Magazine pick, played Balcony TV and had the first single from CITYWIDE CURFEW - The Kraken - released. Their most successful to date, with TV and radio play, interviews etc.

The feedback from music fans was that their small social network following and YouTube plays doubled between Summer and the end of 2009 when they were invited out as special guests by Juliette Lewis to support on all her UK dates.

CITYWIDE CURFEW is a mix of their strong live set and brand new songs, and represents a notable progression from their critically accalimed debut LP, THE SIX GRAND PLOT.