The Pet Rocks
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The Pet Rocks

Sydney, New South Wales, Australia | INDIE

Sydney, New South Wales, Australia | INDIE
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"The Pet Rocks - 'Wayward Ways'"

With the cyclical nature of music these days, one would do well to pull a Rip Van Winkle - hibernate for a good 20 years ‘til your sound comes back in vogue. Ingenious.

Sydney-via-Auckland The Pet Rocks just released their first album since 1998s PR NIGHTMARE. And WAYWARD WAYS sounds just like the kind of understated, unpretentious, unassuming indie rock you'd have heard widely on college radio across the mid-90s - slacker vocals, bouncing hooks, and just a little bit of fuzz to up your buzz.

This is all a good thing - a very very good thing. Take a listen to 'The Scots' (pure pop a la Pavement-meets-Ginger-era-Lilys), or 'Chinatown' (like The Model School's Brendan Wixted fronting BRMC) and see for yourself. There's a reason those slackers always seemed so stoked.

By Wilfred Brandt - http://www.twothousand.com.au/hear/wayward-ways-my-pet-rocks


"The Pet Rocks - 'Wayward Ways'"

With the cyclical nature of music these days, one would do well to pull a Rip Van Winkle - hibernate for a good 20 years ‘til your sound comes back in vogue. Ingenious.

Sydney-via-Auckland The Pet Rocks just released their first album since 1998s PR NIGHTMARE. And WAYWARD WAYS sounds just like the kind of understated, unpretentious, unassuming indie rock you'd have heard widely on college radio across the mid-90s - slacker vocals, bouncing hooks, and just a little bit of fuzz to up your buzz.

This is all a good thing - a very very good thing. Take a listen to 'The Scots' (pure pop a la Pavement-meets-Ginger-era-Lilys), or 'Chinatown' (like The Model School's Brendan Wixted fronting BRMC) and see for yourself. There's a reason those slackers always seemed so stoked.

By Wilfred Brandt - http://www.twothousand.com.au/hear/wayward-ways-my-pet-rocks


"Wayward Ways album review"



People often scramble for comparisons when they hear something completely new. So it is with Wayward Ways, the new release from Sydney/Melbourne (via New Zealand, for the complete antipodean credentials) outfit The Pet Rocks. You can hear a breadth of influences – Wilco, Pavement, Ride, My Bloody Valentine, even the best of early Oasis in the swaggering strides and tambourine hustle of 'The Scots' – but what the Pet Rocks sound like really, is none of these things. Rather, they're that rare and elusive musical jewel: they sound like nobody else.

The production on this album is both lush and at times low-fi, while remaining refreshingly free of contrivance. It allows the instrumentation to breath beneath the vocal ebbs and flows, with keys adding lovely melodic counterpoints to two interweaving guitars and ear-catching bass hooks. It's rounded out by drums not short on thrilling flourishes. This bed of sound makes way for the almost ghostly, sometimes spoken vocals to whisper their way into your ear, where they stay long after the album is over.

While single 'Easy Tiger' received good and deserving local radio play, the standout track is the glorious, gorgeous pop of the cheekily named 'Malt Disney': “When you wish upon a star, makes no difference where you are/ Do we agree to disagree, if we don't fight then we'll never be free.� That chorus is tailor-made for singing en masse in as large a venue as possible.

Living in a world (as we unfortunately are) of Chris Martin sing-song faux sentimentality, there's much to love about the clever and thoughtful wordsmithery of frontman/lyricist Nick Kreisler. His smart and playful turns of phrase can be appreciated just as well when reading the liner notes as when hearing them perfectly married to a naggingly catchy hook. See the fuzzed-up frenzy of 'Chinatown', where we're "listening to the sounds of doom�.

It's a difficult proposition to pull off an emotional landscape that stretches from exquisite heartbreak (the indescribably beautiful, country-tinged title track) to balls-out, celebratory rock ('Dirty Jeans') while stopping off at lounge-y pop ('Slow Train'). But The Pet Rocks succeed winningly with a record that, taken altogether, is a like a journey through a particularly booze-sodden weekend – from run-ins with shadows from your past to a bruising, but satisfying comedown (the aptly named closer 'The Underworld').

A world-class and potentially world-beating record, Wayward Ways could have come out of anywhere – London, New York, Sweden – but luckily for us it comes from right here, allowing for the chance to see this band live when next they're passing through your town.

Highly recommended.

by Elmo Keep
- http://www.messandnoise.com/releases/2000209


"Wayward Ways album review"



People often scramble for comparisons when they hear something completely new. So it is with Wayward Ways, the new release from Sydney/Melbourne (via New Zealand, for the complete antipodean credentials) outfit The Pet Rocks. You can hear a breadth of influences – Wilco, Pavement, Ride, My Bloody Valentine, even the best of early Oasis in the swaggering strides and tambourine hustle of 'The Scots' – but what the Pet Rocks sound like really, is none of these things. Rather, they're that rare and elusive musical jewel: they sound like nobody else.

The production on this album is both lush and at times low-fi, while remaining refreshingly free of contrivance. It allows the instrumentation to breath beneath the vocal ebbs and flows, with keys adding lovely melodic counterpoints to two interweaving guitars and ear-catching bass hooks. It's rounded out by drums not short on thrilling flourishes. This bed of sound makes way for the almost ghostly, sometimes spoken vocals to whisper their way into your ear, where they stay long after the album is over.

While single 'Easy Tiger' received good and deserving local radio play, the standout track is the glorious, gorgeous pop of the cheekily named 'Malt Disney': “When you wish upon a star, makes no difference where you are/ Do we agree to disagree, if we don't fight then we'll never be free.� That chorus is tailor-made for singing en masse in as large a venue as possible.

Living in a world (as we unfortunately are) of Chris Martin sing-song faux sentimentality, there's much to love about the clever and thoughtful wordsmithery of frontman/lyricist Nick Kreisler. His smart and playful turns of phrase can be appreciated just as well when reading the liner notes as when hearing them perfectly married to a naggingly catchy hook. See the fuzzed-up frenzy of 'Chinatown', where we're "listening to the sounds of doom�.

It's a difficult proposition to pull off an emotional landscape that stretches from exquisite heartbreak (the indescribably beautiful, country-tinged title track) to balls-out, celebratory rock ('Dirty Jeans') while stopping off at lounge-y pop ('Slow Train'). But The Pet Rocks succeed winningly with a record that, taken altogether, is a like a journey through a particularly booze-sodden weekend – from run-ins with shadows from your past to a bruising, but satisfying comedown (the aptly named closer 'The Underworld').

A world-class and potentially world-beating record, Wayward Ways could have come out of anywhere – London, New York, Sweden – but luckily for us it comes from right here, allowing for the chance to see this band live when next they're passing through your town.

Highly recommended.

by Elmo Keep
- http://www.messandnoise.com/releases/2000209


"Wayward Ways"

The album is a wonderful mélange of smart pop with jazz and rock leanings, and impressively impressionistic lyrics.

If you find things to dig in bands like Yo La Tengo, Steely Dan and Teenage Fanclub, you will find plenty to love here.

Nov '08 - Waterfront Records


"Wayward Ways"

The album is a wonderful mélange of smart pop with jazz and rock leanings, and impressively impressionistic lyrics.

If you find things to dig in bands like Yo La Tengo, Steely Dan and Teenage Fanclub, you will find plenty to love here.

Nov '08 - Waterfront Records


"The Pet Rocks live at The Hopetoun"

27 November 2008,
Hopetoun Hotel, Sydney.
Reviewer: Chris Familton.

The Pet Rocks are a band that have been around in name since the early 1990’s. Originally from New Zealand and now based in Melbourne and Sydney they have gone through multiple lineup changes with the constant always being singer/guitarist Nick Kreisler. Now on the back of their new record Wayward Ways they have emerged from the recording studio to play a run of gigs in Sydney and Melbourne.

Tonight’s opening slot at the Hopetoun was a chance to hear their songs loud and up close and it was a set that really brought their songs to life. ‘Easy Tiger’ in particular sounded great with its restrained groove that rolls into a rising chorus. It’s a fantastically catchy song that deserves national airplay.

Through their set The Pet Rocks demonstrated a wide range of styles that sat comfortably alongside each other. There are the obvious Pavement comparisons to be made in the laidback vocal delivery of Kreisler but their influences are much wider than that. The guitars intertwined with touches of Television in ‘The Scots’, krautrock rhythms appeared in ‘Dirty Jeans’ and Rob Young’s gloriously fat, fuzzy and rolling bass in ‘Chinatown’ is one that Mani from Primal Scream would be proud of. The crowd definitely turned up early and The Pet Rocks certainly rewarded them with a refreshingly unpretentious batch of indie songs.

- Live Guide - www.liveguide.com.au


"The Pet Rocks live at The Hopetoun"

27 November 2008,
Hopetoun Hotel, Sydney.
Reviewer: Chris Familton.

The Pet Rocks are a band that have been around in name since the early 1990’s. Originally from New Zealand and now based in Melbourne and Sydney they have gone through multiple lineup changes with the constant always being singer/guitarist Nick Kreisler. Now on the back of their new record Wayward Ways they have emerged from the recording studio to play a run of gigs in Sydney and Melbourne.

Tonight’s opening slot at the Hopetoun was a chance to hear their songs loud and up close and it was a set that really brought their songs to life. ‘Easy Tiger’ in particular sounded great with its restrained groove that rolls into a rising chorus. It’s a fantastically catchy song that deserves national airplay.

Through their set The Pet Rocks demonstrated a wide range of styles that sat comfortably alongside each other. There are the obvious Pavement comparisons to be made in the laidback vocal delivery of Kreisler but their influences are much wider than that. The guitars intertwined with touches of Television in ‘The Scots’, krautrock rhythms appeared in ‘Dirty Jeans’ and Rob Young’s gloriously fat, fuzzy and rolling bass in ‘Chinatown’ is one that Mani from Primal Scream would be proud of. The crowd definitely turned up early and The Pet Rocks certainly rewarded them with a refreshingly unpretentious batch of indie songs.

- Live Guide - www.liveguide.com.au


Discography

PR Nightmare - LP, 1998
Wayward Ways - LP, 2008
High Frequencies - LP, 2013

Photos

Bio

We are currently (2013) completing our third album, High Frequencies. It was recorded at Roundhead Studios in Auckland in one marathon 24 hour session.

2014 will mark the 20th anniversary of the Rocks.

Back story:
A young Nick Kreisler had found success with an earlier incarnation of THE PET ROCKS in New Zealand. The band was based in 90’s Auckland, supported The Cruel Sea in 1995 and was widely acclaimed for their appearances at numerous live venues through the country and festivals including the Big Day Out and iconic Kiwi music festival, Sweetwaters (headlined by Elvis Costello, UB40 and Pere Ubu). The band’s hit single, “Blunter Classics Vol. 3” from the ‘PR Nightmare’ album (released in 1998) is still played on New Zealand radio.

Big Day Out, NZ live review ‘96. “The Pet Rocks are displaying the kind of off the cuff arrogance that will make them legends in any lunchtime”… “Only Iggy could have done it better”. John Russell, RIP IT UP

After moving to Sydney in 1999, Kreisler initially played solo and continued to develop as both a songwriter and musician, playing in the inner city venues, including the Hopetoun. In 2000, Rob Young joined him to form Lucky Country, but it was always Kreisler’s dream to revive THE PET ROCKS synergy. Paul Hurrell collaborated for an appearance on air at FBI in 2005, and the trio continued to play gigs throughout Sydney. However once Rory Toomey and Nick Beswick were found a new era of THE PET ROCKS was born.

THE PET ROCKS were soon at Tardis Recording Studios in Sydney cutting ‘WAYWARD WAYS’ in 2006. The aim was to keep the sound fresh and live, and allow the character of the songs to take centre stage. "Putting together this group has been my lifelong goal and I am overwhelmed with how we’ve captured the vision I had for these songs", says Kreisler.

'WAYWARD WAYS' also includes a guest appearance on guitar from Cameron Emerson Elliott (Youth Group) for tracks "Easy Tiger", "The Scots" and “Shimmer”.