The Primitives- SPIN-O-RAMA (ELEFANT)

After not being around for over two decades this sugary UK pop quartet returned in 2012 with ECHOES & RHYMES (and album of 60’s covers). I never heard that one and while friends tell me it’s good, you want to hear if a returning band can still write an album full of originals. I have listened to SPIN-O-RAMA, several times and I must say, it’s excellent! It sounds like vocalist Tracy Tracy has not aged one bit and guitarist Paul Court, who sings a few tunes here, still blasts out those hooky guitar riffs like it was the only thing he was put on the planet to do. Also returning is drummer Tig Williams, still happily bashing away, and the band’s old producer Paul Sampson is here on bass (one of the things that brought the band back together a few years ago was the death of their original bassist, Steve Dullaghan).  On SPIN-O-RAMMA, 11 songs breeze by in just under a half hour and from the opening title track on through the punchy “Hidden in the Shadows” onto the janglier, 60’s ish Court-sung “Wednesday World”, you can see they’re in fine form. Elsewhere the trippy (also Court-sung) “Purifying Tone” also caught my ear as did the flat-out great “Lose the Reason” and the lovely “Petals.” I won’t spoil all of the surprises for you but suffice it to say this is a more-than welcome return. SPIN-O-RAMA is superb! www.elefant.com