Betchadupa - Aiming For Your Head (2004)

This article was written back in the days when Liam Finn (son of Crowded House's Neil Finn) hadn't yet gone solo. And it was written in the days when Wayne Rooney was just a young whippersnapper, learning his trade at Everton. This is what journos call 'setting the scene'. Now that I've done that, you can read on... Betchadupa were a revelation at Auckland’s Big Day Out this year, where they outshone every other homegrown act (and on a bill that included The Datsuns and The D4 that was no mean feat). When you have a live show as good as theirs it's a logical step to go analogue and record an album "as live" - so that's exactly what they've done. Aiming For Your Head is a definite progression from Alphabetchadupa (their quiet-bit-loud-bit Nirvanalike debut). This time they're bolder and tougher, able to take a few chances and surprise you a bit. The lolloping pyschedelia of 'My Army Of Birds And Gulls' is a fantastic way to start, laced with conspiracy theories and paranoia. Elsewhere, unexpected tempo changes make songs zip about like flies, with ‘Running Out Of Time’ and the title track being particular highlights. They're less convincing when they play safe, as on former single 'Move Over' and it's B'side 'The Bats of Darkwell Lane'. Perhaps they sense themselves that they can do better than that now. All in all though there's enough to suggest that one day Betchadupa are gonna record a five star, solid gold record. This isn't quite it but it's a step in the right direction.

afyh

Betchadupa - The Alphabetchadupa (2002)

Coming after three increasingly well-received EPs and released just after the youngest member of this New Zealand quartet, Betchadupa, turned 18, Alphabetchadupa is the first full-length release by a band that's unfortunately always known as "the band led by Neil Finn's son." Liam Finn is no Frank Sinatra Jr., however. Despite a superficial vocal resemblance to his father's mellifluous pipes, Liam is very much his own man throughout Alphabetchadupa. Considerably mellower and more melodic than their sometimes noisy EPs, many of the songs on Alphabetchadupa recall the mellow vibe of UK bands like Coldplay and Travis, yet even on ballads like the deeply emotional "Lucy's Song" or "Easy As It Seems," Liam avoids the prevalent trap of sentimental mopiness that ruins so many similar albums. More important, he's got a real knack for writing extremely catchy guitar pop tunes like the sublime first single, "Supa Day," and the sassy riff-rocker "Filthy McNasty." Neil Finn was the same age as Liam when he joined his older brother's band, Split Enz, and remade it in his own pure-pop image; Alphabetchadupa shows that precocious pop smarts run in the family.

lfn