The Whigs - Mission Control [Album Review] » Sound On The Sound

April 25, 2008

The Whigs - Mission Control [Album Review]

mission control

I think it’s safe to say that right now The Whigs early 2008 release Mission Control has virtually owned my iPod in the month I’ve had it. Dubbed by Rolling Stone in 2006 as one of that year’s “10 Artists to Watch”, this is these Georgia gentlemen’s second album out on ATO Records, and it’s a consistently catchy album all the way through. Led by Parker Gispert’s crisp confident singing style, this trio succeeds by milking every ounce of sound from each instrument and never letting up on the accelerator. With huge distorted rhythmic strums accompanied by Julian Dorio’s measured yet explosive drumming, the album itself seems to exude a contagious energy from the speakers as it plays.

I’m particularly fond of the two opening tracks “Like A Vibration” and “Production City,” and later on “Need Need You,” if for no other reason than the relentless riffage and sheer pace. Part of why I was so disappointed when seeing the Whigs at Stubb’s at SXSW this year was hearing these songs and being unable to pick out the subtle rhythmic dynamics that make them so great on the album (I blame the sound man). Other notable favorites include “Right Hand on My Heart” which recalls the BoDeans and of course the final track, the title track, “Mission Control” which seems to start out with a lost Doves intro and continues in the vein for the entire song.

It’s still not entirely clear, to even me, why I like this album so much. Their sound isn’t startlingly unique and I’m not sure I can go so far as to I can compliment them for exemplary musicianship, yet with Mission Control the Whigs seem to have captured and understood the fundamentals of rock, groove and speed in ways few bands grasp. As a three piece, each element of the sound is so much more important to the identity of entire song, and while this is especially true of the Whigs, in Mission Control each instrument still manages to forge an identity, often making it hard to discern who’s in the lead during any given song.

The Whigs will be at the Sasquatch Music Festival at the George, for day 1, Saturday May 24. I highly suggest you make a point of seeing them. Hopefully the sound will be better than at SXSW. Starting in early May they will be on tour with Barsuk Records’ What Made Milwaukee Famous, who are promoting their new release What Doesn’t Kill Us. If you aren’t making it to Sasquatch, those tour dates are below the fold.

MP3: “Right Hand on My Heart” - The Whigs from Mission Control

the whigs at stubbs