Album Review: You Am I - Hourly, Daily

People are usually pretty willing to pick their favourite You Am I record and you'd wager more than most would choose this 1996 ode to the romanticism of suburban life as top of the pile. The band had already rapidly matured between their first and second records, and here they took another leap again; the songs of Tim Rogers harking to his 1960s rock heroes more than ever, while the experience of both suburban and touring life informed the tales within. The rollicking Mr Milk, Good Mornin', Forget It, Sister and If We Can't Get It Together, the despondent Heavy Comfort, Tuesday and Please Don't Ask Me To Smile are all among Rogers' best and, as a complete package, it's a delight from start to finish.

But the bonus material is the reason you need this reissue, despite it being hit and miss. Rogers sounds unenthused on Up Against It and the single version of Mr Milk is inferior, while Boulder Fair and Who Turned Out The Lights are two of the band's finest moments to not to make an album. The brilliance of Trike is well-established, but Tuesday Morning will blow fans' minds; it's what the Hourly, Daily's Tuesday could have been and, while it's not terrible, the band made the right decision. On the live front, Beat Party Live At Wiseold's, the original Hourly, Daily bonus disc, ranks with 1999's …Saturday Night, 'Round Ten as the best representation of the band live and is probably worth the price alone.

It's a dense package paying overdue tribute to a worthy band in arguably their finest moment.