Album Review: Bad//Dreems - Gutful

There's an inauspicious start to this album with the Bad//Dreems-by-numbers Johnny Irony.

But any doubts of a second album slump are quickly quashed by first single Mob Rule, which utilises gang chants and pub rock bar chords to rail against the narrow-minded, pack mentality sub-cultures in Australian society.

They hit some fine melancholic spots like the yearning By My Side and the woolly strum of Pagan Rage — a distant sonic echo to one of their first singles Chills. They still bear the iconic Aussie rock imprint of producer Mark Opitz, but overall this is a less forced and more subtly varied album that even takes in saxophone on Million Times Alone. Stripped of the bluster and noise, it highlights how well the band blends mood and wistful melody alongside lurching rock'n'roll.