Kram - Mix Tape - Album Review

****1/2
1. Good Love
2. Ridin High
3. She's My Girl
4. Turn A Light On
5. Burnin Sands
6. Silk Suits
7. Live A Long Time
8. Won't Be Home Tonight
9. Harmonies
10. Satellite
11. The Best Thing
12. Thankyou Mr Ludwig
13. Get To It
14. Long Cold Night
15. Down The Line

The debut album from Spiderbait singer/drummer Kram lives up to it's title Mix Tape as it changes gears seamlessly across the 15 tracks as all good mix tapes should. What makes it even more impressive is that with the exception of a few cameos from Tumbleweed's Ritchie Lewis and Jet's Nic Cester, Kram has played all the instruments himself.
First track "Good Love" could appear easily on any of Spiderbait's albums and starts the album in high gear. The following track "Ridin' High" heads in the opposite direction with a wah-driven guitar riff, smooth bass and funky beat which was briefly visited on Spiderbait's previous album Tonight Alright's highlight "Picky". Kram channels Beck for another cruisy foot tapper "She's My Girl" and as "Turn a Light On" starts with an acoustic guitar strum and piano it is clear this album intends to take the listener on a musical journey. "Burnin' Sands" is another excellent track showing off Kram's vocal range with some great falsetto vocals. First single "Silk Suits" sounds like the Kram we have known and loved for all these years and is accompanied by a great clip featuring Kram and Alicia Molik head to head on the tennis court filmed at Rod Laver Arena.
The album continues to bring the hits in the second half and plays more like a best of than a debut album. Other highlights include "Satellite", "Long Cold Night", "Get To It" and the percussion instrumental "Thankyou Mr Ludwig". It is the perfect album for road trips, parties or just listening by yourself with headphones. It is my favourite album of the year and as there were 50 songs recorded for the album, another album could be on the cards in the future.