Reviewed by David George

Canada. Land of Bryan Adams, Bruce Cockbum, and now... Hokus Pick Manouver. This Vancouver based 4-piece have about them something of the college graduate humour of They Might Be Giants - imagine Fat And Frantic with a Canadian accent and you'll be there. Guitars jangle merrily, drums pound enthusiastically, the vocals are ever so slightly out of tune - you know the kind of thing. It's all done with a wink and a smile but for me, at any rate, it doesn't really come off. "Love And Co", which will strike a chord with tongue-tied Romeos everywhere, and "Sofa Logic", chronicling the sorry existence of a couch potato, stand out, but as for the rest - well, it's pleasant enough, but fairly unexceptional. I suspect HPM are really in their element live, but here they never quite manage to get into their stride. If quirky college graduates are your cup of tea 'Pick It Up' might be worth a flutter, but somehow I don't think this will be the one to make them giants.

The opinions expressed in this article are not necessarily those held by Cross Rhythms. Any expressed views were accurate at the time of publishing but may or may not reflect the views of the individuals concerned at a later date.

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