Bahamas - Pink Strat (2011)

Afie Jurvanen is a subtly disarming man who, I will admit at the first glance of the cover art for Pink Strat, I had taken for a brash and cocky archetype; A James Dean or young Marlon Brando more interested in riding a motorcycle through the halls of a rural high school than writing music. Though within the first few seconds of leading track Lonely Loves, He had me smitten. If there is a mean bone in this guy’s body, it’s buried so deep beneath his altruistic heartbreaks that it may never see the light of day. Bahamas is strung up with a lilt that’s fixating. Afie’s breathy lyrics reach well beyond his age and speak volumes beyond his casual presentation. For Good Reason and Already Yours will never be bound to a setting, and are just as easy to picture played in a lonely apartment as a bustling, smokey cocktail lounge. They unearth regrets and mistakes with a consolatory hand-on-the-shoulder and a cold, hard shot of honesty for anyone who’s been left behind or alone. Sentimentally, though, hope is not lost on Pink Strat. These are songs for the bereft, dead set on not harbouring any grudges. Southern Drawlshows off Afie’s considerable range and potential as spokesman for the unrestrained and straightforward jilted lovers. The album’s closing track, a retuning of Wreckless Eric’s Whole Wide World hints at Bahamas roots in rock n’ roll that have been run ragged, but not out of town. Pink Strat is a collection of tinged truths that are perfect for those still full of the promises of better days.

Tracklisting:
01. Bahamas - Lonely Loves (Album Version) (2:02)
02. Bahamas - Hockey Teeth (Album Version) (2:35)
03. Bahamas - Southern Drawl (Album Version) (2:48)
04. Bahamas - For Good Reason (Album Version) (3:43)
05. Bahamas - You're Bored, I'm Old (Album Version) (2:41)
06. Bahamas - Sunshine Blues (Album Version) (2:21)
07. Bahamas - Already Yours (Album Version) (2:06)
08. Bahamas - What's Worse (Album Version) (3:29)
09. Bahamas - Let The Good Times Roll (Album Version) (1:34)
10. Bahamas - Try, Tried, Tryin' (Album Version) (3:56)
11. Bahamas - Til The Morning (Album Version) (2:00)
12. Bahamas - Whole Wide World (Album Version) (2:35)