Viagra Boys have been making a name for themselves over the last few years. Thanks to raucous live shows, an ongoing beef with The Hives and a strict consistency to dogs and shrimps, the Swedish bands have put in the work to emerge as one of the best bands around today. On their new album, viagr aboys, they prove that the buzz is absolutely warranted.
Kicking off with ‘Man Made of Meat’, the lead single brings all the riffs and grime you could possibly want. It frantic pace is met with a gritty instrumental that’s determined to bring Viagra Boys’ off-kilter grooves to the forefront. With references to being sleazy in a McDonalds, to Chandler Bing dying in hotdog water, to subscribing to your mum’s OnlyFans and seeing her flabby giblets, it has the lyrics to match the sound: dirty and hilarious.
It heads into ‘The Bog Body’, which pairs a Hives-like riff with some classic punk vibes to sound urgent in its desire to get your meat body moving. ‘Uno II’ leans further into the absurdity, easing on the riffage but delivering a laid back groove that channels the POV of a dog. The joy of finding a crouton underneath a futon is something we might not get to fully appreciate as humans, but the song delivers a beat similar to Welfare Jazz‘s ‘Creatures’ and really makes its way into the hips. It’s a good change of pace, and the first of many styles heard on viagr aboys.
After the dance-punk flurry of ‘Dirty Boyz’, things slow down even more on ‘Medicine for Horses’. Bringing a vulnerable performance that strikes a chord, Seb’s pained vocals are handheld by sparse guitar notes and stark drums. Creating a desolate instrumental that makes you pause for a second. A female voice is heard contributing harmonies and the result is something really quite moving, which isn’t something I thought you’d get from Viagra Boys.
‘You N33d Me’ is a real standout. Returning to pick up what was dropped by ‘Dirty Boyz’ to dazzling effect, the song documents the machismo of a protagonist who believes he’s the real deal. Making ladies stop what they’re doing to watch him dance – it has a bravado that matches the industrial swagger that exudes from the instrumental. Its bouncy, glitchy sound fills in all the cracks, and creates another unexpected dance number.
Creating stiff competition for album of the year, viagr aboys is a superb album. It’s a gloriously filthy, dive-bar embracing listen that simply doesn’t miss. Its heaviest songs are great, and the full embrace towards a dance-punk sound really hits the mark throughout. Even their experimentations into more atmospheric directions hit, as they bring out a vulnerability that hasn’t been seen before. Viagra Boys can seemingly do no wrong, and this album shows that they really are one of the best bands around.
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