Viagra Boys : Viagr Aboys

First time I’d ever heard Sweden’s Viagra Boys was opening for Queens of the Stone Age. I had an idea of what a band called Viagra Boys would sound like, and my imagination did not disappoint. But what I didn’t expect was to like them as much as I did. The 6-piece Swedish post-punk band led by vocalist Sebastian Murphy(originally from California but moved to Sweden to live with his aunt when he was 17) don’t take themselves seriously, and that’s an attribute. The nearly spoken word songs come at you like a sugar-charged 5-year old; Devo-esque blasts of energy, with the punk delivery of the Hives and Pere Ubu and the carnival barker delivery of lyrics like Jon Spencer Blues Explosion.

But while lyrically a cross between meth Elvis or a door-to-door televangelist, musically they mean business. Guitars, bass, drums, synthesizers, and saxophone come at you in a blaze of hyperbolic glory. Smashing your face while offering you a beer right after.

Their newest and fourth album Viagr Aboys is their best yet. Keeping up on the punk rock delivery with a touch of Captain Beefheart and drunk Elvis impersonator, but bringing new elements into the mix(a piano ballad to close it out), Murphy and his band of misfit toys expand their sound and drunken brevity to new heights.

“Overweight freaks ride around on wheelchairs/Motorized by electric motors made by goblins/In a factory overseas” opens “Man Made Of Meat”, which brings us into the record with a sloppy groove and nonchalant strut. “The Bog Body” brings another Swedish band to mind in The Hives. A messier, sweatier version of the suit and tie punk revivalists. There’s a grime that lays over the production, giving the song an aged quality. “Uno II” has a more laid back, yet ominous feel. Echoing flute in the break gives the song an air of mystery. “Pyramid of Health” has a wonky 90s alternative sound. In-particular Marcy Playground’s “Sex and Candy” comes to mind in the song’s sleepy swagger.

There’s two tracks here that feel like steps forward for Viagra Boys. The first is the dreamy “Medicine For Horses” that comes across like The Pixies experimenting with shoegaze tendencies. It’s a great track. And album closer “River King” is a straight up piano ballad. It’s a shock to the system to hear such a simple and pretty track closing a Viagra Boys album, but they pull it off beautifully.

Viagr Aboys is another great record for Viagra Boys. And their best yet.