[review 2004: the best of the year]
Some albums speak to the heart’s inner turmoil. Some albums address the higher concerns of philosophy and spirituality. Some albums are manifestos for political revolution. Some albums tell intricate stories of life in the present day or of times long past. There are many great albums that fall under all of these categories; Thunder, Lightning, Strike isn’t one of them.
The Go! Team have constructed no grand statements, have said nothing of real importance to touch the mind and the soul. Thunder, Lightning, Strike is an entirely different beast; it’s an album that seems to encapsulate the dreams of little kids, where everything is in technicolour and surround sound. It’s what giddiness would look like if you pressed it to a piece of aluminium and plastic and stuck it in a CD case. It’s what giddiness sounds like, too: big, bold, brash and hyperactive.
“Panther Dash” is what six-year-olds hear in their heads when they imagine winning the Indianapolis 500. “Ladyflash” is the superfunkified soundtrack to a first-grader winning the double-dutch championships. From the bright sounds of “Get It Together” to the fantastic horns of “Bottle Rocket,” from the Charlie Brown piano of “Feelgood By Numbers” to the chorus of voices on “Huddle Formation,” Thunder, Lightning, Strike is filled with exuberance and joy. The hooks grab hold of you with a death grip, and the beats make your feet move of their own accord.
Everything on the album sounds like something you vaguely recall in the back of your head, but because it’s all put together so well, you never figure out exactly where you’ve heard the harmonica in “Everyone’s A V.I.P. To Someone” before, or why “The Power Is On” sounds like the backing track to the action movie in your head. Even when the album isn’t pressing its attack and slows things down a notch, it manages to put a smile on your face.
It’s really a shame that Thunder, Lightning, Strike can only be found here as an import (or as an iTunes Music Store download—thanks, Martin). Everyone who touches the album seems to instantly fall in love with it, and if Thunder, Lightning, Strike can successfully infect a North American audience with its boundless energy and exuberant glee, then maybe there’s hope for the world yet.