Album Review: Sugar Army - Summertime Heavy

There is a heavy air of menace hanging over Perth band Sugar Army's second album. The follow-up to their 2009 debut, The Parallels Amongst Ourselves, was recorded last year in Sydney's Big Jesus Burger with Scott Horscroft (Silverchair) and Eric J (Weezer) in the shadow of the departure of bass player Ian Berney.

Arriving in Sydney as a three-piece, remaining members, singer Pat McLaughlin, guitarist Todd Honey and drummer Jamie Sher, have created something darkly cohesive and intriguing. Honey plays around with his role as primary guitarist, building a through line from album start to finish with the little guitar runs that propel these songs. While Honey guides the listener, McLaughlin provides much of the intrigue. A standoff-ish frontman, McLaughlin is able to build the mood with his phrasing and aloofness as his band works around him. And though the album revels in its darkness, it never trips up into oppressive. The band always keeps things moving along and Sher provides drumbeats that any indie fan raised on the likes of Editors and Bloc Party can get their groove on to.

In the 12 months since the band recorded the album they've added two new musicians to the touring version of Sugar Army, so these songs will have morphed quite considerably by the time the band launch the album at their Sydney shows, but there's a strong foundation here to work from. It's been a long time between drinks for the band, but while Sugar Army are happy to inhabit the dark fringes of Perth's rock scene we should be happy to accommodate them.