SXSW Preview: The Vaccines

From KCRW DJ DanWilcox:

Don’t think that all the praise The Vaccines are receiving at the moment is going to go to their heads.

One of the most buzzed-about bands of 2011, the UK quartet already has the “Hottest Record In the World” nod from BBC’s Zane Lowe, an MTV Best New Band nominee, an NME cover and nearly won the 2011 Brit Critics Choice Awards top prize.

But amidst all this rapid fire success, the band remains grounded in a self-depreciating sense of humor, as evidenced on the cheekily ironic “We’re Happening“… an exuberant piss-take on a shiftless indie band’s moment of falling upward (“Who are you/what do you do/oh yeah, I like doing nothing too”). Which means they are going to be just fine.

The band does has some experience going through the hype machine spin cycle – singer Justin Young was recognized as an up-and-coming folksinger a few years back under the name Jay Jay Pistolet (whose song “Happy Birthday You” I’m quite fond of) and guitarist Freddie Cowan is the brother of Tom Cowan from The Horrors, another intensely acclaimed band.

The Vaccines sound is immersed in fuzzy garage & 70’s punk and would appeal to fans of The Ramones, Television or Wavves.

“Wreckin’ Ball“, with it’s extra loud sing-along chorus, would fit in nicely amidst a stack of 45’s from The Damned. And the current single, “Post Break-Up Sex” is the best post break-up sex song about post break-up sex.

If you happen to be down in Austin for SXSW I recommend checking The Vaccines live on Thursday, March 17 at Filter Magazine’s Culture Collide at Cedar Street Courtyard sponsored by KCRW.

Just don’t stand too close to the speakers… you may regret it.

— Dan Wilcox

Video Extra: “If You Wanna”