I have been anticipating a new clutch of brilliance from one of my favorite current bands, Philly’s Univox, for a while now. Some gems have dropped since their last full length, released eponymously on the venerated ROIR label. This self-released LP springs out the gate with “Drivin” a fun as hell Yardbirds / Spencer Davis Group vibe, with trademark vocal gymnastics that sees the full band harmonizing angelically under the unique and understated bass of lead vox Josh Jones. As with most Univox, you get some riff candy right away, but after repeated listens, you sink deeper into the form and realize how much sculpting and sweat goes into each track. “How Many Times” cranks things up a notch with a hazy, gothy kind of surf roller, evoking both The Growlers and ‘70s R.E.M..
“All I Do” slinks forth metronomically, with the cloistered, cavernous feel of the album really asserting itself now.. a simple idea is turned into a mood perfectly illustrated by melody and actually really timeless and moving. “I” is instantly familiar (has it appeared before, on a prior release or have I seen them play it before on tour…) and carries the magic of Univox, the effortlessness with which the hooks get into you. “Yellow and White Lines” is evocative of nocturnal drive nights on tour, the hypnotic flashing of towns and lights. I’m probably wrong, and will correct if so, but on the stunning and soaring tune “Mary”, I think drummer Kent Boersma takes over the main vocal drive, there is a breakdown that just makes your heart stop. “Dirty” is a radio ready pummeling dance fest that pulls the punch at the last moment. The brilliantly titled “Spirit of McEnroes” just pierces the heart with some british affectations, I think bassist Rob DeCarolis asserts his clear harmonies here. “Drive” pushes the pedal to the mat with the wild, completely gone fuzz of Joe Bonaventura on the shredding guitar, then “At The End Of The Day” brings it on home with a short little number that’s almost like a rock n roll prayer, of sorts.
Univox are a brilliant quartet of players who have always provided creative, complex and challenging music while never compromising the baseline of total abandon and rock and roll. Frightfully talented singers all, The Altec (like every Univox release) is to be savored slowly, to be grown with.. the pathos of the lyrics, the “just-so” lattice of each song’s harmonies and hooks expand in the heart and memory, once applied to the soundtrack of your life. Yet another triumph from one of today’s most compelling bands, one that should linger for quite a spell!
