Marvelous 3 is as fitting a name as a band could ever have. Their latest release, Hey! Album, will be as appealing to a pop fan as a cup full of Hanson, but it is also as rock ‘n’ roll as anything The Cars ever put out. Hey! Album can hold its own against any album on the Top 40 charts.
Marvelous 3’s driving rock style combines euphonious choruses alongside creamy guitar licks and marching drums. The range of singer/songwriter Butch Walker’s vocal abilities is apparent. He can swing from a saccharine sweet falsetto in one verse to a damning tenor in the next. The band’s influences include Elvis Costello and Cheap Trick. The similarities are obvious.
“You’re So Yesterday” showcases their ’70’s rock with clapping that is reminiscient of Richie Cunningham and the Happy Days gang. This hybrid rock is nothing new, but is refreshing in the aftermath of the apathetic era of grunge. While the infectious chorus from “Freak Of The Week” gives it the potential to be the overtly cute radio single, “Write It On Your Hand” is pure rock. It’s the type of song that aspiring musicians like myself wish we could write, but find ourselves writing about instead. “Every Monday”, “Over Your Head”, and “Indie Queen” are all full-blown pop dramas.
“let me write it on your hand/ so you won’t forget/ forget just what you had/ go and write it on your hand.”
– from “Write In On Your Hand”
It’s unusual for an album to entertain the listener from beginning to end, but Hey! Album does just that. Marvelous 3 has put together a really impressive effort. These songs collectively illustrate exactly what this band is capable of doing. I strongly recommend that you check them out because their diverse style will appeal to many musical tastes. I’m still riding high.
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