Cave World. Viagra Boys

If Viagra Boys ever had anything to do with jazz, that inclination has been chucked over board with Swedish neutrality this spring. Was 'Welfare Jazz' (2021) my introduction to the band, Cave World automatically lands on the place prepared by the previous album.

Viagra Boys thrives on energy and adds some political incorrectness into the mix. All 'wappies' as we call them here and other conspiracy theory followers are shown a mirror that shows them for what they are according to Viagra Boys, troglodytes. The band truly does not speak mealy mouthed. The energy it puts into the music reflects the lyrics with even more urgency.

The Swedish Viagra Boys started in 2015 and broke on the Stockholm scene in 2018 with the album 'Street Worms'. The band set a standard for the energy in its music and shows. In 2022 that energy is unleashed into the world once again on record and live.

If I have to compare the band to anyone, I end up with The Hives, also from Sweden. With one difference, that in my opinion Viagra Boys is able to write songs at a consistent level. The energy is certainly on par though. On the other hand Viagra Boys is not afraid of experimenting a little or lot, just how you look at it. Take 'Creepy Crawlers'. In the lyrics the anti-vaxxers are prominent. with little creepy crawlers in the vaccines. Musically the band shoots off in all sorts of directions. Spoken word, experimental soundscapes over a stark rhythm and a saxophone that is on high alert. Just like singer Sebastian Murphy is, as the world is caving in on him fast, like his sanity obviously is.

Promo photo: Frederik Bengtson

The album opens with a burst of energy. Cave World is set to go from the get go. 'Baby Criminal' has everything that makes Viagra Boys so incredibly good. A rhythm that begs dancing, saxophone madness straight out of the Ian Dury and the Blockheads dictionary, supertight rhythm guitar playing and a dash of madness in the singing. Murphy has a rough voice and uses it in the right way. There is a little of Nick Cave in there, except that I only started listening to Cave when he had mellowed out, i.e. 'Push The Sky Away'. Cave World in that sense, although it hardly makes sense to do so, is aptly titled. The energy is so catchy. The instrumental interlude is only a short brake before 'Troglodyte' is released. Odd enough there is some disco in the rhythm of that song. A small surprise added.

The second half of the album does contain some mellower stuff. This does take some getting used to after that fantastic opening. In total Cave World has three interludes of circa 30 seconds. The slower, electronic and more percussive 'The Cognitive Trade-off Hypothesis' is really something different with its deeper-voiced and higher-voiced vocals. It all leads up to another monster called 'Ain't No Thief'. Again a disco rhythm is laid under the rock the band plays. It bares some of the extreme influences of Viagra Boys' members, is my guess. Continue down the album and you will find even more diversity.

All in all, Cave World is an album with at least three faces. I stopped counting there. When it all has been said and done, what sticks with me most is the energy. Viagra Boys has it in abundance and does not mind sharing some of it with the world. And, Viagra Boys as sooth sayers? "A murder takes place in Japan"? You tell me.

Wout de Natris