Walking on Sunshine

Ex-Soft Boy Kimberley Rew would find the perfect band to showcase his formidable songwriting talents in Katrina and the Waves; erstwhile lead singer Katrina Leskanich can belt, croon, or plead with the best in the business. The group's first release is an almost perfect album of timeless pure pop songs. The tunes are hook-laden and memorable, and they're performed with a flawless mix of energy and lightness. "Going Down to Liverpool" is a great, infectiously bouncy song that would be covered later by the Bangles and other groups. The title track is rushed-tempo perfection, irresistibly bubbly and frothy. "Machine Gun Smith" is a nervously memorable number with chattering guitar accompaniment and ironic lyrics critical of terrorists. "I Really Taught Me to Watusi" exhibits an itchily danceable Latin influence and gives the instrumentalists a chance to do solos, while "Ain't No Money" is an energetic soul-styled song. "Spiderman" and "Don't Take Her out of My World" show glimmers of a fuller power pop approach that the band would explore more fully on subsequent albums. This release is an absolute must if you can find it.