Major Major - Great Leagues (2008)

Purchase EP: Official Website

It's been a long time between drinks for the truly great Melbourne band. Just because it's a city that churns out musical wannabes at a rate unlike any other (perhaps New York might be it's closest competitor), it doesn't mean that a good portion of them are even any good.

A few years ago seemed to be the year of the WA band (Little Birdy, Eskimo Joe, End Of Fashion) and the Aussie musical landscape seemed to be on a fairly healthy trajectory.

Yet, since then, every single band that has shot to prominence has been either a carbon copy of some trendy Strokes rip off, or a ridiculously camp over-use of fluro colours.

Where did that flair for originality go? Was everyone to busy trying to fit into their skinny jeans (yes, we get it, you had to buy the female jeans... very clever... you are cool)?

So it's fantastic to see that Melbourne is finally starting to kick back with some good old fashioned fun (it started with the likes of Little Red), and some downright enjoyable and original sounding tunes.

Major Major are one of those bands that has been around the local live traps for a few years now. They haven't lowered themselves to cheap gimmicks to rise the up the ranks quicker (in fact, there isn't a single piece of make up or a pair of Lady Ga Ga glasses in sight).

They have yet to include one of those "Presets keyboards" (that every man and his dog seem to carry around like Boom Boxes) into their set.

And if you're lucky enough to have seen them live - they are one of the few bands around that don't wander around with a self important swager or look like they've been on Valium for the better part of a decade.

It seems, as shocking as it sounds, that Major Major just enjoy making and playing music.

And it's that genuine sense of passion and joy that is prevelant throughout their second EP, "Great Leagues", that makes this one of the most exciting releases of the year.

This oddly nautical themed extravaganza kicks "Great Leagues" off with live set favourite, The Beast, and it signals what proves to be a big leap forward for the band from their previous self titled EP.

The track influences are less obvious, the structure of songs are more defined and there is a noticeable feeling that the songs (in the hands of a major label with a budget) have some serious potential to be played ad nauseum on radio.

The Deep Sea traverses a musical path not unlike that of an early Coldplay or Snow Patrol - and you really get the feeling that if The O.C was still on air, this would be a prime candidate for an indie artist "end of season slow motion depressing romance scene backing track" - but the good kind.

What's better is that it's short and sweet (running at just over two and a half minutes) yet still enables that classic "build to euphoria" Chris Martin keeps harping on about. A track that hopefully makes a transition to the inevitable album release.

While "Great Leagues" by no means perfect (it seems to suffer the same fate of Little Red's debut LP in that the lack of a budget is quite obvious at points, as well as some tracks occasionally seeming underwhelming when compared to live performances) Major Major has certainly set the standard for what we can hope to expect from Melbourne music going into the next decade.

Raw, original - and most importantly - good old fashioned fun, "Great Leagues" is a joyous ode to 90s mid-western indie rock and an encouraging sign that the world hasn't been completely devoured by electro-poppers just yet.

RATING: 3.5 out of 5