Beyond Race Magazine

Summer Cats- Songs for Tuesdays
30th July 2009
Sun’s out and surf’s up for Aussie pop quintet Summer Cats’ debut full-length LP, Songs For Tuesdays, which is as cheerful and light hearted as its name suggests. Hailing from Melbourne, Summer Cats have a ’60s beach-pop flavor with hints of shoegaze and rock elements for a more sophisticated, contemporary sound.

Released under Slumberland Records, Songs For Tuesdays seems like the perfect warm weather release even from the initial glance of the tracklist, with song titles such as “In June” and “St. Tropez” (not to mention the band’s name itself). But breezy melodies from “Christopher Wren” and “Wild Rice”—harmonica and all—take the album sailing.

“Lonely Planet,” one of the stronger picks from the album, opens with a rubbery bass that soon gives way to dream-weaving vocals that channel influences like the Beach Boys and contemporary indie rock bands Voxtrot and Phoenix.

Fast paced, mini tracks “Fulton Gurls” and “Super” are each less than two minutes long, but are still full of light summer jamming—something Summer Cats are all about. The nice thing about that is that it makes Songs For Tuesdays an easy, enjoyable listening experience. However, the album lacks depth and growth.

The album’s stunted growth is most clear when you realize the two strongest tracks—“Let’s Go!” and “Hey You”—were both first and second on the album’s set list, respectively. While this gives Songs For Tuesdays a strong start, it also doesn’t provide the rest of the album the opportunity to gain momentum.

The flip side is that for an upbeat party album, Songs For Tuesdays hits all the marks and does everything right. It’s not necessarily a listen for the deep thinker, but there should be at least one song from this band on everyone’s summer play list.

-Matthew Anderson
Beyond Race Magazine