Album Review: Feelings - Be Kind, Unwind

Before Philadelphia Grand Jury's untimely demise, fans of lo-fi indie rock wouldn't have been too hyperbolic to foresee the Sydney trio leading the sound into the future, even if it took them the rest of their lives.

Thankfully the premature disbandment has something of a happy ending with frontman Simon Berkfinger's Feelings providing somewhat of the follow-up. But is it any good? Well, Be Kind, Unwind doesn't match the spark or the enthusiasm of his previous outfit's debut and, it certainly seems, he really misses his old bandmates. Breaking it down track by track proves more challenging as there simply isn't a Going To The Casino, a Ready To Roll or a Good News or anything that could truly become one of those staple triple j classics. Forerunning single One In A Million does, however, feature one of Berkfinger's finest hooks and delivers its sentiment beautifully, while Intercourse only just falls short. New York Summer cooks with some of the fine ingredients of old, but losing a lover has always sparked Berkfinger's creative side nicely.

Be Kind, Unwind will quench the thirst of some diehard Philly Jays fans; some will even find solace in at least a few of these tunes. But overall, the material just isn't quite there, the album tends to fall short as an entity and simply doesn't quite reach the heights or the hooks the Berkfinger we all know and love is entirely capable of.