Vicious Vicious

It’s no surprise to Erik Appelwick that Vicious Vicious is releasing a new album despite several years’ hiatus and members with calendars booked through forever. Appelwick, the band’s founding member, chief songwriter, guitarist and singer, simply knows that the material that has been slowly and steadily honed to make-up the band’s self-titled full-length is simply too good to be kept to itself. Way back in the beginnings of the 21st Century, Appelwick recruited a band of killer Minneapolis musicians to gig and record the songs of Vicious Vicious with an eye on fame and riches. Somewhere in the middle of this glorious ascension he recorded and co-produced the debut record of fellow Minneapolitans Tapes ‘n Tapes (The Loon), joined them on bass guitar and toured the world. Between tours and the construction of two more Tapes ‘n Tapes records, Appelwick kept in touch with Vicious Vicious drummer/keyboardist Martin Dosh (notable postmodern instrumental artist and Andrew Bird sideman) and the two of them conspired to free themselves up just enough to get Vicious Vicious off the ground again. They recruited James Buckley on bass and began to sort through the collected demos to record what would become Vicious Vicious, released January 10, 2012.

Vicious Vicious is a luxurious pour of satisfying Electro-Rock/Soul. The culmination of nearly a decade of work in and out of the studio, on the road and in the basement, Vicious Vicious’s self-titled full-length is three quarters of an hour’s worth of inspired song craft and illumined production. Opener “Jumpin Fences” sets the mood and claims the band’s sonic terrain, with wide-open reverb and a smooth, sexy spirit as Appelwick’s falsetto comes clean into the fray. From there, Vicious Vicious engages easy acoustic-pop and sunny, So-Cal funk with equal aplomb. “I Know U Know I Know” features funky breakbreats courtesy of Dosh and a head-bobbing hitch to its groove. “The Crooked Lines” is cast somewhere on the nexus between Spoon, Broken Social Scene and MGMT. Over 11 tracks, Appelwick, Dosh and Buckley make beautiful these songs of stepping out and falling in love and getting all kinds of messed up.