I always love it when you hear a record that manages to capture the sound of a band enjoying themselves, providing a snapshot of a group of friends having the time of their lives doing what they were put on this earth to do. That is exactly what we have with Get Real, the debut album from CVC. Get Real is a collection of songs that were clearly a lot of fun to write and record, now it is the turn of us lucky listeners to lose ourselves with them, to smile, sing, skip, punch the air with joy, embrace friends, embrace strangers, and feel privileged to be waking up in the mornings. Yes, music can do all of that and more and Get Real is one of those special debut albums that will make the rain clouds part and leave our world full of blue skies and sunshine.
The album opens with Hail Mary, a song that is full of cheerful melodies, laidback vocals and a very health nod to Wings. CVC are a band who are not ashamed to wear their influences proudly on their sleeves. What I love on this song and so many others on the album is the creative journey the band take us on, the way Hail Mary gently takes us into the chorus is truly majestic. Talking of those influences Winston has melodies that Gilbert O’Sullivan would be proud of. It would not be an overstatement to call Winston a modern-day Pop classic. This song laments the fact that radio stations do not always play the songs we want to hear. Well, if any radio controllers are reading this you really need to be playing Winston and every song on this album.
Knock Knock comes at us with some great bass lines and percussion that holds the song together. Sophie opens with a beautiful, sweet voice recording of a girl who is too embarrassed to sing in front of voice. The song tells the story in such an effortless way of how this girl who does not want to sing is such a great singer whose voice needs to be heard. After some classic guitar solos, the song concludes with a declaration of love from the bands Keyboard player “Nanials in love, Nanials in love”. Anogo is another charming pop song, with melodies and backing vocals to make you sway from side to side and before you know it a big grin will be all over your face. Good Morning Vietnam is a great indie rock song of modern times. It has been a few years since I spent a lot of my time at indie discos but I have no doubt this song would fill the dancefloors of every indie club throughout the country.
Woman of Mine is a perfectly crafted song, those soothing vocals and laidback vibes will be sure to capture and hold your attention. In a world where we are losing our attention spans it is so great to have bands like CVC who are giving us songs that allow us to have moments of escapism. Music Stuff is a song that serves as a reminder of the power of music as a collective experience. Let’s not forget what we lost during the pandemic, that experience of being joined together by music. Music Stuff is a song that I can see friends / strangers swaying together side by side, putting arms around each other and singing the chorus as one without a care in the world.
Mademoiselle has some swirling, sometimes haunting melodies to open the song. When the lead vocals and backing vocals enter the mix there is further evidence that we really are in the company of greatness. As with Sophie we have those guitar solos that sound like they have come straight from the 70s to cheer us all up. Docking the Pay is an anthemic, passionate song about working for the man and not getting the recognition that is deserved. Get Real is full of stand out moments, this is certainly one of them with a chorus that will be firmly implanted in your minds and one you have no choice but to sing along to “Hey I can’t believe you’re docking my pay”. American Ultra closes the album with some infectious beats, rhythms and melodies combined with a chorus that would be a perfect soundtrack to a late night in your local pub.
Those are my views on Get Real, the only thing left for you to do now is to go and listen for yourself and I feel confident in saying you would be hard pushed to disagree with the sentiment of this review. CVC have given us an album to start feeling excited about the year ahead. I am very aware I am writing this review during the first week of new releases for the year and I was a little afraid to use the following statement but sod it when an album is this good it is never to early to say Get Real is a strong contender for debut album of the year.
Get Real is available to buy now on indie exclusive yellow vinyl