ICE CREAM HANDS - MEMORY LANE TRAFFIC JAM (1997)
The Australian power-pop band Ice Cream Hands comprised singer/guitarist Charles Jenkins, guitarist Dominic Larizza, bassist Douglas Lee Robertson and drummer Derek Smiley. Debuting in late 1992 with a self-titled EP, the group issued their first full-length release "Travelling...Made Easy" a year later. After 1994's "Supermarket Scene" EP, Ice Cream Hands issued another stop-gap single release, "Olive", before finally resurfacing with their sophomore LP "Memory Lane Traffic Jam" in 1997.
Ice Cream Hands fits neatly into the '90s power-pop revival, holding dear the values of guitar-pop bands from the Beatles to the Posies. Nevertheless, there's something different about their debut album "Memory Lane Traffic Jam" (albeit a difference that only pop fiends will be able to spot). Ice Cream Hands manages to stay faithful to pop conventions while developing their own identity - and many of their peers, despite their craftsmanship, haven't been able to pull away from the pack. As children of the '80s, they came to power-pop through new wavers like Marshall Crenshaw and jangle-pop, so there's a bit of a rootsy/folky underpinning to many of the songs. "Memory Lane Traffic Jam" doesn't sound like a revival, however. Ice Cream Hands peppers the album with enough sonic allusions, from the Eric Carmen-esque "Winter's Tune" to the stilted funk of "Olive" to post-alternative guitar flourishes, to keep things interesting. But what it really boils down to is the songs themselves. Charles Jenkins, the group's main songwriter, has a knack for constructing solid songs where hooks lead into new hooks instead of simply lying dormant. The songs are immediately catchy, but they grow stronger upon each listen -- a hallmark of a truly fine pop album, and it's all the more impressive when you take into consideration that "Memory Lane Traffic Jam" is a debut. Not Lame's American reissue of the original Australian release contains three bonus tracks - "Miller," "Sobersides," "Visiting Girl" - that are not on the original release. Stephen Thomas Erlewine, AMG
Songs
Is It Your Electric Chair / Winter's Tune / Paper Bird / Iron Shoes / Here We Go 'Round Now / Shake and See the Reason / Embarassment Head / Early Morning Frost / Supermarket Scene / Leave Us Kitten Alone / Olive / Angel Inside / Go When You Want To / Is It Already Too Late / Miller / Sobersides / Visiting Girl
