Hitting play on Electric Hawaii is like entering the swirling, hallucinogenic world of a garage party in the 60s, filtered through a futuristic astronomical lense, with a touch of the Pacific. It's somehow retro and post-modern simultaneously, irresistible in its mad blend of blues, psychedelic rock, Motown, fuzz pop, harmonies, and jazz, and it's hugely entertaining with its occasional snatches of humour and irreverence.
That's not to say it isn't a serious album, but it's unmistakably the product of a Nielson brother - Kody Nielson to be exact - who, along with his brother Ruban, helmed the Mint Chicks, notorious for their playfulness and flaunting any notions of conformity.
It could be overwhelming in its layers of sound, but the strength of this album is that the songs are so intrinsically strong and catchy; the extra sonic exploration adds to the appeal rather than burying the ideas.
Plus Nielson understands the importance of dynamic range - though there's occasionally a sonic assault (like on Inhaler Song, which is actually a piano-based love ballad) there's also delicate beauty (like the fluttering harmonies with Bic Runga on Fly), and always a deep sense of groove.
With the drums, bass and keys parts written before anything else, it's an album that's overflowing with uber-cool melodic basslines, and intricate linear drumming that winds around those lines.
