Helicopter Helicopter

Wild Dogs with X-Ray Eyes (Initial)
by Katy Shea

The Boston Sound… how much more amorphous can ya get? The tunes on Wild Dogs With X-Ray Eyes have the smell of a Central Square rock den all over them. It’s inescapable and malignantly delightful. Maybe that’s not the most eloquent description of this sweetly serious, angsty yet consistently hopeful band, but their songs ring with a quality that would not be fairly described with hiply-worded platitudes about their capricious and endearing boy-girl harmonies, pleading lyrics, and punk-inspired guitar fuzz. The hook-centric and brightly-voiced musical choices lend a positive spin to such classic rock themes as loneliness, insomnia, alienation, unrequited love, and depression, making each interesting again. It feels fun and urgent and not overly cool or played. This album reminded me of being a teenager: All sadness and hope, sexuality and loneliness, aggressive judgment and crushing insecurity. It’s simultaneous accessibility and cleverness make Helicopter Helicopter an interesting find. On the light side, but packed with atmosphere.
(PO Box 17131 Louisville, KY 40217)