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The Checks: Hunting Whales

Takapuna Grammar alumni The Checks have hauled in 11 giant tracks, many familiar as reworked staples from a band which seemed to have it all, already, two or three years ago. Now based in England they’ve garnered some impressive nods, touring with REM’s Michael Stipe and featuring in music rags NME, Mojo & Rolling Stone. Listening to this debut album it’s easy to see why. Sonically blistering and bluesy, these mop-haired muso’s create ‘60s-inspired R&B/rock that’s polished, tight and pure unadulterated fun. Cherrybomb tracks Take Me There and What You Heard serve as quintessential rock anthems; armed with deep beats and grainy riffs that brand your memory bank. Ed Knowles’ gravel voice is the driving force and for the most part, the album shifts gears at the right times, sweetened up with dewy rock ballads like Where Has She Gone. Last lick of the ice cream, The Memory Walking, puts the whole album to bed; offering a watery blues lullaby. Tour buses, tarmac roads sticky with heat, and the ruddy reflection off a pair of Ray-Bans all come to mind when listening to this bevy of bold tunes. Recorded with Ian Broudie at Rak Studios in London, ‘Hunting Whales’ is a well tasty collection of new-retro for the rock starved this summer.

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