It’s pretty bleeding obvious where Brisbane’s Dr Bombay is aiming. It’s that elusive but enviable sweet spot - right where melodic pop intersects with loud and fast rock and roll. Bullseyes are a rare thing but, more often than not, the Bombays land close to their target.The most notable stand-out on Dr Bombay’s c.v. is Voodoo Lust, singer Gary Slater’s ‘80s band. Voodoo Lust were one of those hard-working acts who arrived on an amazingly busy Sydney scene and threatened to break-out, but never quite managed to emerge into the open air. It wasn’t through lack of trying and Slater still still has swagger and a bouncy pop presence that you don’t stumble over every day. He writes all Dr Bombay’s songs and they’re keepers.
Stewart de Lacy on guitar (Kewpie Doll, Sanity Assassins, Krank/Spank) and Greg Baxter on bass (Presidents 11, Arctic Circles) have done the yards, too, while the less road-worn Joey Thorburn provides the important youthful element on drums.
“Satisfied” is a promising opener but it’s bettered by the hooky “That’s What I Like”, but “I’ll Tell Ya Something” and the bubblegum bliss of “Pop Song” set the melody bar even higher. Like a few people reading this, “What Am I To Do” is firmly stuck in the ‘80s with a rise-and-fall melody line and churning feel.
A lot of the songs hurtle along at mid-tempo and “What Part Of That Don’t You Understand” ramps the pace down a notch to good effect. Lyrically speaking, Slater’s closer to the Stones than Dylan and that’s not a bad thing when you’re mining this turf. If there’s a criticism, Dr Bombay sits just this side of pollte with the snarl sometimes contained.
The engine room is bouncy in the right places with an easy fluency in Baxter’s sympathetic bass-lines. De Lacy applies the right amount of guitar grit to the sheen to make sure it never gets too shiny, while Jeff Lovejoy’s production is clear-headed and faithful to the band’s sound.
If you suspect you know what you’ll be in for then you’re probably right. This sort of rock-pop never gets old in these parts. Get a dose.
3/4
