The Vaccines aptly titled second album, Come Of Age, sees a massive upturn from their hugely overhyped debut release, What Do You Expect. Hardline fans will be pleased to hear they haven't lost their infectious Strokes meets Ramones signature sound, but their second offering is much more evolved, albeit a little inconsistent, than anything they've produced yet.
The group put their best foot forward with opener, No Hope, which offers up a catchy mix of new and old with some youthful angst thrown in for good measure. I Always Knew is a real standout track; whoa-oh's and all, it's just really easy to listen to. The same sentiment applies to Teenage Icon, vocalist Justin Young belting out “I'm no Frankie Avalon, I'm nobody's hero” bordering dangerously close to power pop, but it gets your feet tapping and you could listen to it on repeat.
All In Vein holds true to the album's title; it's much more sophisticated than anything on their first album and arguably their best track to date, stunningly retro and another standout track. I Wish I Was A Girl, however, is a major disappointment. Young should stick to what he knows and write this one off as a failed experiment in sociology. “Life is easy when you're easy on the eye” - come on, really?
There are so many different influences fighting for attention as the album nears its close it becomes a little hard to keep track, and harder still to figure out exactly what genre this group is aiming for. Come Of Age gets out of the gate with some really strong tracks, but then wavers towards the finish line. That said, it's a big step forward and sets the bar higher still for album number three.
