Jakobinarina- 'The First Crusade' (Regal) Released 01/10/07

Teenagers, hey? Always bloody moaning. Ooooh, I have to work a crappy job. Ooooh, it's not much fun. Ooooh, let's write some music about how rubbish everything is. However, unlike the Enemy who are essentially really shit, Jakobinarina, a group of self described “Icelandic adolescent wastrels” craft glorious punky indie numbers. Shouty choruses echo out as, like all good youth rebels, they rail against everybody else for being rubbish, their lives as well as the old teenage perennial favourite of escaping small town humdrum tedium.

'Jesus' encompasses this perfectly, full of admirable condescension to all with the refrain of "jump around to the sound of mediocrity." Their peers are dismissed with Jakobinarina deciding some people are just destined and deserving of boring desk jobs. Not for them, however. Certainly not based on the strength of melody and the goddamn catchiness of what's to be found on 'The First Crusade.' Coming over like the Hives let loose in the sweetshop, they're all pop melodies and whip snap quick guitar riffs mixed into a gorgeous mush.

The song titles themselves demonstrate the bands' all encompassing worldview. 'Monday I'm In Vain,' 'His Lyrics Are Disastrous' and 'Nice Guys Don't Play Good Music' all show the verve, wit and panache that is entwined into the cracking little ditties found on the debut of Iceland's new favourite sons. Lead singer Gunnar sounds like he'd strangle his nan to get out of the Reykjavik 'burbs he's emerged from. On '(I've Got A Date With) My Television' he pronounces that he would change their beautiful moniker to “the Coca Cola Band/ just to get our pockets filled.” Getting rid of that good a scrabble score?

If Jakobinarina don't escape the mundanity that they desperately evade like it's a leprosy ridden tramp then the record buying public deserve purgatory in a call centre hell. “It's Monday and I'm in vain/ Stuck in the mundane” is the opening couplet of the album, and not a more concise summation of it can be found.