Kyte provided great, very melodic, instantly catchy power pop which you’ll find yourself humming long after you’ve popped their compact disc out of the player. Hailing from Gothenburg, Sweden, Kyte really reminded me of an amalgam of the Raspberries / Beatles / Flaming Groovies with a dash of the Scruffs, but that’s just to give you an idea of what these very talented guys sound like.
The upbeat harmony-driven album opener “Golden Diggers” set the pace for this self-titled LP. My personal fave on the album, “Out of the Blue,” is a highly melodic song that had hit single written all over it. Lynch pinned by its infectious George Harrison-style ’65 guitar hooks with tight skyrocketing harmonies, I couldn’t get this fabulous song out of my head.
“Inner Film” is also another fantastic song song that will stay long in your head, with all of its “I Should Have Known Better”-era sound and hooks. Just solid, fab rock ‘n’ roll. The Beatles’ Hard Days Night-era influence prevails throughout most of Kyte, with a few exceptions here and there.
“Jewellery,” “Ultra Violet” and the hard-driving “Ill (Once Bitten)” are, for example, very much modern-rock fare, and would not have sounded out of place on any modern college-radio station back then. So you get a good mix of sounds here for those too concerned that it’s all retro rock.
“Club Alexander” is another outstanding melodic rocker that’s radio ready for any rock or Top 40 station. “Danny’s Right” slides right into Revolver mode with a “Taxman”-like rhythm and tunefulness, and Raspberries-style soaring vocals. The upbeat “Sexy, Sexy Thing” boasts souring Help-era vocals and added organ that gets the blood pumping in this tale of girl lust vs. religious guilt.
“Instant Needs” is another rock solid pop tune that’s almost bearing a Monkees vibe. Very cool. “Albatros 2002” might possibly be an update to Fleetwood Mac’s “Albatross,” with a John Lennon-like vocal. At least it sounds like it to me. A very nice mellow tune. The mid-tempo Badfinger / Beatles-like “Peacemaker” was Kyte’s first music video and another single-worthy song.
Main man and lead vocalist / guitarist / songwriter Marcus Bohm drives this four-man band with tight harmonies, along with bassist David Janson. Drummer Jonathan Brynteson powers the tunes along very well and original lead guitarist Mikael Nilsson provided the majority of the melodic fills before leaving the group. Marcus took over lead on three tunes. New lead guitarist Simon Alderborn added some of the rock-solid harmonies on a couple of the tracks.
Kyte was a solid debut album by a very promising group. In fact, I called them the best new band of 2008. Alas, they didn’t last long: Bohm went on to form Hazy Weekends.
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