The 59 Violets - Prime Numbers By Steve Rudd

First things first, a bit of vital number crunching: the debut album from North Lincolnshire's va-va-vooming 59 Violets four-piece is 40 minutes long and spread over 11 fantastic songs. Each and every track is moulded around some superb melodies, as these boys wield both the pop sensibility and high-octane energy of The Wildhearts. Opening tune Yeah Yeah Yeah provides a perfect introduction to the band's music, being a thoroughly full-tilt and riff-heavy spark of sheer rock 'n' roll excellence.

Dirty Water - lifted from the band's 2nd EP - proceeds to prove that Digsy and Chris on are both more than capable of providing some truly sublime guitar work (aswell as sharing out vocal duties), the brilliantly crafted verse-chorus based songs bolting out of a similar stable to the music of Jet and the Kings of Leon. So there. The 59 Violets, who regularly play in Hull (and have previously supported the fame-and-fortune-fondling likes of The Levellers, Malibu Stacey, The 5,6,7,8's and 10,000 Things) make the most of all the best elements ever unearthed in rock 'n' roll folds, as their This 'Lil Piggy tune taps into retro rock heaviness and sounds to owe much to the influence of The Who and Led Zeppelin.

The brilliant production values that buoy up Silver Sea stand proud not just through this song but through the entire album, as the awesomely angular guitar riff of She's A Ride ultimately supports the remix of Yeah Yeah Yeah to the hilt. Such a remix of the opening song actually closes the album, and compared to the aforementioned original version, the beautifully conceived remix is a far groovier and gloriously tripped-out affair that emanates from an atmospheric soundscape introduction.

Indeed, these guys also - from a musical point of view - share much in common with bands such as The Music and The Stone Roses in their more sultry moments.

This album, at the time of writing, isn't totally finished. The officially finalised version - that is due for release either very late 2004 or early 2005 - might even include one or two more remixes of their own songs. Still, even if the album is released as it stands, there is more than enough reason to get very excited by the material therein. Please excuse the timeworn cliche, but I can't resist gushing that The 59 Violets rock. They really do.. pure and simple. 5/5 www.fiftynineviolets.com

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