Milwaukee’s own Mike Benign has a compulsion to play rock and roll that’s not easily dismissed and with the help of guitarist Joe Vent, bassists Brian Wooldridge and Paul Biemann, keyboardists Tyler Traband and Dan Type, and drummer Mike Koch they’ve got a nice debut. “Rollicking Musical” has great songwrititng and production, and the opener “Legendary Superheroes,” gives us a catchy riff in the chorus too. The sound is a pretty good mix of influences from Elvis Costello, The Byrds, Guided By Voices, Crowded House and Squeeze with Benign’s working class vocals leading the way. The lyrics are thick with cynicism in “All The Married People” but the true gem here is “The Soothing Sounds of Seals and Crofts,” with it’s fuzz guitar and awesome hook, describing an insomniac’s rant that “…Sleep is a sign of weakness.” It’s on this album Benign has found his true voice, but it may take a few spins to get used to his Dylan-like cadence. Much of the albums second half don’t quite reach the highs of the earlier tracks, but “Hotel Bar” is a beautiful guitar ballad that is very moving. So repeat after me… I will get this album. The power of Mike Benign compels you!
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