Gimme Some

Writer's Block was a great record, full of hooky rock tunes like Young Folks (the whistling chorus went viral overnight). This record is a return to form after some more mellow discs. There's not a weak song here. The band's roots are showing with riffs lifted from Archie Bell & the Drells classic "Tighten Up" on Dig a Little Deeper, just to mention one of the more obvious homages.

The first single, "Second Chance" is made for heavy airplay. "(Don't Let Them) Cool Off" is a hard charging 80's-ish arena rocker that has to sound great live -- it's in parts punky, REM-ish, and pure PB&J fun. "Black Book" starts off like a White Stripes outtake but late in the track it rocks harder and harder.

There is a lot more guitar up-front on this record than in past efforts and it has a great sound. It's as if REM moved to Sweden and got good again.

Five stars, one of the best CDs so far this year. If you like your rock with jangly guitars and hooky melodies, check out this great disc from Peter Bjorn & John.

i purchased this on vinyl and it is the worst sounding record in my collection. Everything sounds muffled and muddy. Highly, highly disappointed. It even came with a CD that sounds just as bad. It's obvious that the dynamic compression on both the Cd and Vinyl were cranked up. If I were to buy it again I'd save a ton of money and buy the MP3 download. I suggest you do the same. It's too bad, the music itself is great.

Peter Bjorn and John shot to indie-critical claim out of nowhere in 2006 with their 3rd album "Writer's Block", which truly was an instant-classic album, containing so many memorable tracks. The band toured crazily behind it and then took its time to come back with new studio material. There was the side/interim-release of "Seaside Rock", which then was followed in 2009 with "Living Thing", a decidedly much darker album than anything before from the Swedes. Not surprisingly, the album fell mostly on deaf ears here in the US. Now comes the band's 6th album.

"Gimme Some" (11 tracks, 37 min.) kicks off with "Tomorrow Has to Wait", one of the few tentative tunes on here. But after that things pick up and things feel differently from the "Living Thing" album. The energy seems back and the vibration is positive. "Dig a Little Deeper" feels like it could be a radio single, but wait, there's more of that! "Second Chance" is en equally upbeat can't miss sing-along, and is certainly the most infectious tune from the Swedes since "Young Folks" on the "Writer's Block" album. "Breaker Breaker" is a 1'39" rock and roll romp, just great. "May Seem Macabre" takes its time to develop but pays off, with great underlying drums. And so it goes, the album goes non-stop from up-tempo track to hum-along track, and in fact there is only one slow song on here ("Down Like Me") that almost seems out of place on the album. But it all culminates into the closer "I Know You Don't Love Me", which is the "Up Against the Wall" equivalent from "Writer's Block", a long but irresistible song that brings it all back home.

In all, I can't emphasize enough how pleased and surprised (in a very good way) I am with this album, which, there is no denying it, is a return to the sunnier side of the Swedes. At 37 min., it zips along in no time and before you know it you'll find yourself playing this again and again. Whether or not it is done as a cynical or sincere attempt to return to the success of "Writer's Block" is besides the point, as "Gimme Some" is a fun and enjoyable album from start to finish. No, I wouldn't go as far as giving it three thumbs up (as on the album cover art), but it is definitely two thumbs up, as this album has been one of the most unexpected surprises of the year so far. I've seen PB&J in concert a number of number of times over the years, and I cannot wait for them to go on the road again in support of the new album. Welcome back PB&J!

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