Album Review: Wake Me When We Get To Utopia

There are times when nothing will hit the spot like a dirty filthy good old-fashioned hard-hitting rock and roll band, and that is exactly what we have here. If I didn’t know they were from Wellington I would have guessed possibly New York, as there is no way they sound Kiwi. Mister Unit are a quintet with three guitars who sound as if they have been raised on a diet of MC5, The New York Dolls, George Thorogood & The Destroyers and The Stooges while possibly taking something from The Angels and even AC/DC. This is solid real rock music, with a rhythm section that sets the foundation and keeps it tight with the three guitars swapping leads – I mean, one of them is playing a Flying V!

Add to that the lead vocals which sound like a cross between Dan McCafferty, Danny Joe Brown and Iggy and we have a punkish hard hitting rock band that is guaranteed to have a good time on the stage while the punters have a great one off it. There is nothing particularly clever about what they are doing, with all three guitars following the same riffs at times (some nice basslines though, must be said), but they are all locked in and one can feel the sweat and temperature rise. When one gets to the penultimate track one is settled into the groove, which is then knocked out as they play Postcards From Hell, a song written from the point of view of a couple that have been together far, far too long, and is presented in the form of a Pogues-like waltz, with mandolin, 12 string guitar, electric guitar, bass and fiddle, courtesy of Kate Marshall. Of course, there must be a wife telling the story of how she wants to kill the husband as well as vice versa, and Rain steps up to the mark to assist in creating a song which is so at odds with the rest that the first time I played it I checked if I was still on the same album! For me this is the standout track, and then they end with the title cut which sees them get back to the norm, yet somehow it feels more epic due possibly to what has just gone before.

This is a great party rock band, one which thrives in the live environment, and with this album they have songs which provide the vehicle for them to have loads of fun, as does anyone giving this a listen. Solid and unpretentious, this is honest and raw, straight from the heart.