| · Thirty-eight minutes of middle-aged kicks mark the return of Ireland’s new-wave ambassadors.
In a lot of ways, the fortysomething geezers who make up The Undertones now are the Northern Irish guttersnipes you’ve always known and loved. Get What You Need features mostly uncomplicated, old-school punk driven by the twin guitars of the O’Neill brothers. It’s not super-fast, it’s not super-distorted, but it’s pretty fun.
It’s not all "Teenage Kicks" anymore, though. Feargal Sharkey hasn’t returned to the fold for this album, so the vocals are now being handled by Paul McLoone. He’s a good singer, but his vibrato-heavy style doesn’t always fit with guitar-driven tunes like "Thrill Me." McLoone fares much better in less traditional settings, like the blues groove of "Ride The Rough Escalator" and the Beach Boys-esque harmonies of "Winter Sun."
New voice, new directions – now we’ll just have to wait and see if there’s a new resurgence for The Undertones.
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