Swedish imports the Sounds are mired in the ’80s and don’t care who knows it. Whether or not that makes for an enjoyable trip through their sophomore record, Dying to Say This to You, depends largely upon your tolerance for caffeinated retro rock. “Song with a Mission” might well be the band’s motto, let alone the opening salvo of Dying to Say This to You. Felix Rodriguez’s brittle guitar gives this track a punky edge, dripping with attitude; hell, the album’s press releases opens with the sentence “Attitude plays a big role in the Sounds.” Eleven songs blow by in less time than it takes to watch an episode of Lost, but the impact is effervescent, like a cotton-candy contact high; it’s deliriously addictive—the lively “Queen of Apology” evokes what I imagine Pat Benetar would sound like if she hailed from Norway—but after one time through, you’re left with an empty feeling. Slick and propulsive, the quintet needs a little meat on their songs to help elevate their slavish ’80s enthusiasm into something a little more memorable.
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