Song of the Week: Creepin' Up Slowly

"Creepin' Up Slowly"
Taxiride
from the album "Garage Mahal" (Warner/Australia, 2002)

Australian band Taxiride went worldwide with their debut album "Imaginate" back in 1999, but disappointing sales in the United States prompted them to bypass North America for their subsequent releases. Besides narrowing its distribution, there was another difference apparent in their sophomore effort: the sound. Taxiride took the airy, BBMak-like sound of their first album and roughed it up a bit, throwing in crunchier guitars, slightly heavier drums, and sometimes moodier lyrics.

One of the more pop-oriented, radio-friendly tracks off "Garage Mahal" was this totally infectious single, which became the most-played song on Australian radio that year. "Creepin' Up Slowly" reminds me a lot of Hanson's "If Only", probably in part because I'm not all that crazy about the "scratching" effects -- really the only thing about either song that I don't love. Why put such a "poppy" element in a song that's otherwise firmly planted in rock, especially if you're wanting to be taken seriously as a maturing band (something that Hanson, and presumably Taxiride to a lesser degree, were trying to do)? That one minor flaw notwithstanding, this song is otherwise a slice of pure music bliss.

Taxiride went a bit heavier still for its most recent album, "Axiomatic" (perhaps a bit too much, since I ended up trading it in eventually), but they did have one equally dandy single, "Oh Yeah", from that album. But I consider "Garage Mahal", and specifically the song "Creepin' Up Slowly", to be their peak. Maybe they'll have another one in the future....