90’s radio darlings the Goo Goo Dolls are back with their tenth studio album Magnetic, and they are showcasing an unbelievably strong record full of shiny pop rock nuggets of gold.
It may seem like a long time between drinks for the band but in actuality since they last toured Australian shores in 2002 they haven’t stopped releasing material. Their last record Something For The Rest Of Us was released in 2010 and Let Love In came out in 2007, both with little fanfare or promotion here but with relatively good success on their US home turf. Their latest album Magnetic, which also happens to be their tenth in a 27-year career, is a lighter more uplifting record than its predecessors and is jam packed with radio friendly pop rock material that still showcases the bands strength in song writing at its core.
Opening track and also the first single off the LP is ‘Rebel Beat’, inspired by the neighbourhood street parties of New York frontman John Rzeznik saw in his downtime, and it has a real summer vibe (too bad it’s winter here now but we won’t hold that against them) with a joyous relaxed feel. While ‘Caught In The Storm’ has a stomping call to arms thump in the verses and addictive hooky chorus, as well as some inspired drum rolls and beats from Mike Malinin in the middle 8 breakdown whilst Rzeznik near whispers, “I’m tired of sleeping, sleeping through my own life, it’s time to wake up, wake up with eyes open wide”. This positive attitude is a common thread running through the entire album and is reflected in the other songs like ‘When The World Breaks Your Heart’ and ‘Slow It Down’. A personal standout track for me is ‘Keep The Car Running’, it builds through the verses and then really punches out everything it’s got in the chorus and also reiterates the optimistic message in the lyrics “Bruised and battered, torn and tattered, look at me it doesn’t matter, still got some fight left” and is a perfect closing track for the record.
Bandmate bassist Robby Takac also gets to show off a couple of his own tracks, the strongest being ‘Bringing On The Light’, his raspy vocals are an interesting aural texture against the main piano and guitar medley but this track still manages to encapsulate the punk rock essence and energy that was the bands origins. In saying that, most people will know the Goo Goo Dolls courtesy of their ginormous radio hit ‘Iris’ and the two ballads on this record ‘Come To Me’ and ‘Bulletproof Angel’ are worthy follow-ups. The latter in particular has a similar build then erupt into a crescendo, and romantic wistful lyrics but less emphasis on the strings and orchestra. In actual fact, this entire record focuses more on your standard guitar, piano, bass, drum elements and less on large string orchestrations which drives the sound in a more pop rock vein. It’s fantastic to hear material that has a combination of heart and soul as well as energy and fun atmosphere.
Review Score: 9.2 out of 10
Magnetic by Goo Goo Dolls is out now via Warner Music Australia.
———-
