Be prepared music lovers because one of the most infectious rock albums of the year has just dropped in the form of the new EP from The Dives. The aptly-titled, Everybody’s Talkin’ EP is not only going to… well, have everybody talking, and not because frontman Evan Stanley is the son of the legendary Paul Stanley (KISS), but because this is some of the catchiest rock music that is going to be released this year.
One listen to Everybody’s Talkin’ and you soon realise this is the kind of music that you want to hear in some grungy bar in St Kilda or Fitzroy. The opening track, “Make It Like The Movies”, has that catchy feel that bands like The Androids have had over the years, but instead of being pop-rock this has a dirty garage rock feel that firmly makes it alternative rock.
“Anticipation” sees the band deliver some catchy rock that is definitely going to have your foot tapping, while the title track opens with some deep bass riffs from Sergio Ortego, and then with lines like: ‘she’s into guys that look like father’ turns into a Paul Kelly-esque track with that alternative grunt that makes you fall in love with The Dives straightaway. My favourite track, though, is the 1970s inspired, “Man, Oh Mandy” that had me singing along after just one listen.
Everybody’s Talkin’ hails in an exciting new rock band in The Dives and I get the feeling that this album is going to be playing around my place for a fair while to come. I just can’t get enough of “Man, Oh Mandy.”
