Radium Dolls – Wound Up (Self) (13th Floor Album Review)
Queensland band Radium Dolls are back with their second LP Wound Up. Their sophomore effort embraces raw Australian rock. But deep in the eleven songs, we really see how clever these four chaps are.
Once again, I am a few drinks too late to the party that is Radium Dolls. First gifting us an EP in 2020, they’ve built a dedicated national following. Their debut Legal Speed garnered some fairly critical acclaim. And in March, they’re off to tour the United States.
“This is dated Aussie pub rock”, I muttered to myself as I heard the first few bars of one of the early singles Unravel. Nevertheless, I diligently listened to Wound Up on release day and I discovered that this is only a half-truth.
On the surface, there are loud guitars and an extremely Australian, husky baritone from singer Will Perkins. The latter being about as Aussie as a can of XXXX while eating a chicken parma/parmo (I could never work out which is appropriate). Listening to them, I imagined the schooners (obviously at various sizes dependent on which Australian state I might be drinking in) breaking violently around me amidst a barfight in the 1970s pub rock scene.
Yet the more I listened, the more I picked up on other features within a large fraction of the songs that seemed much more intelligent than the ruckus at the aforementioned (and totally imagined) Governor Hindmarsh Hotel experience I compared Radium Dolls to.
Moving is a great example of this. By all accounts, I shouldn’t like that song. In fact, I shuddered (inwardly) when I heard the soppy four-chord intro (and the overdriven chords joining on the chorus). A second listen showed me that actually there was more to this tune than met the ears. The narrative of a break up, and the parting of ways. Both members suitably heartbroken, but not malicious. I don’t feel like we’ve had a lyric like that for some time. And then, just to prove a point to me, the band used a really cool (and unexpected to me) discordance in the bridge section. My first impressions on Radium Dolls were swayed.
Admittedly, I could tell Daddy was pure vented frustration at entitlement and racism. But even the opener Radio had me rather intrigued by its take on primetime/drivetime radio presenters. Beneath the raw energy, these guys have a story to tell. And I like that. The pair that close the album (the wonderfully vulnerable Favourite and All That Falls) were a nice change of pace. It also provides a premature end in the vein of Ize of the World or I Want You (She’s So Heavy) which I absolutely love!
And if you want raw rock music thrown in your face, you’ll still find plenty of that on Wound Up. These blokes aren’t re-inventing the wheel. There’s literally a song called Hot Heads, Hot Breads where the singer lists different breads at some point (surely, there’s some symbolism in there!). But there’s still plenty of discordance thrown in for good measure. Bryce Equinox puts in a solid effort on the drums as well, it was certainly something I picked up on fairly early in my first listen through.
Wound Up is an experience that is a new take on Australian pub rock. Yes, there’s the expected energy that hits you hard. Yet Radium Dolls bring a vulnerability that you can’t help but admire. Partner that with a clever lyrical take (at times) and you have a pretty killer album.
Good on ya, Radium Dolls.
Daniel Edmonds
