The Tubs – Hard Life – Album Review
by Killian Laher

There’s a lot of ‘buzz’ about Welsh band The Tubs at the minute, with muso critics very excited about them.  It doesn’t quite fit the Geese-style hype, but they have had enough attention to make the doubters here at No More Workhorse take notice.  This is their third album and their first on Merge Records.

On your initial listen, it sounds like a load of different things crammed together (Bob Mould, Replacements, Smiths, R.E.M.).  But the more you listen, the more you can’t help but be carried along by its rollicking, reference-strewn tunes.  It starts with a great big glorious riffola of the title track which swaggers along, singer Owen Williams bawling lyrics over guitars and a little piano.  It rocks good-naturedly, doing more in three minutes or so than many songs do in twice the time.  Who’s Gonna Love You Now rocks along happily like Bob Mould with jangly Marr-like guitars rather than power riffs.

Just when you’re afraid things might get a bit too upbeat, proceedings get moodier on If You Don’t Love Me a midpaced minor key strum, Williams sounds even more like a weary Bob Mould here and the touch of fiddle evokes early 90s R.E.M.  Stoop To Me is practically theft in broad daylight with Williams singing “if I can’t change your mind” over a very Mould-y chord progression, followed by some terrific, gauzy guitars on the hard-rocking Heaven or London, reminiscent of Sugar, sure, but the band pull these songs off with just the right level of charm.

The album sags a bit midway through.  Do Yourself A Favor (a Prince rarity apparently) does exactly what The War On Drugs do in channelling that middle American heartland rock, complete with cheesy keyboard and a chorus consisting mainly of Williams repeating “walk on by”.  Now and Then would remind you of that cheesy Bryan Adams song you just can’t place, with a bit of Phil Collins thrown in.

The Way It Goes is back to that appealing R.E.M. vibe that will have men over a certain age carrying out some dad-dancing.  Not content with that, Hell crams all your favourite early R.E.M. jangle arpeggios into 102 seconds.  Some glorious Smiths guitar lines populate the penultimate track In Your Place, while the sad As Long As You Leave is possibly the simplest and most direct song here, a plea to a lover perhaps?

It could be an album to soundtrack your road trip, your win on the horses, or just make your day just that little bit cooler.  To employ a cliché: turn it up loud.  Who knows where something like this really comes from or where it will go from here?

Hard Life