Any band making music that sounds like psychedelic surf Sonic Youth B-sides distilled in Billy Childish’s garage will capture the ear of Bowlegs. And as much as that concoction might thrill the very pants of some people (we’ll be honest and include ourselves in that ‘some people’ category), The Super Vacations can’t quite pull it off on their ‘Thicker Milk’ album. They do try though. With 21 tracks (most are sub two minutes), the Virginian outfit are offering value for money. But Bowlegs would have traded the extensive track list for a shorter album, comprising stronger, more cohesive work. As it stands, ‘Thicker Milk’ too often descends into shambolic garage thrash-outs: and not the good kind. From the outset you know you’re not going to get a cleanly produced, shining nugget of a record. ‘Moss’ tears into your speakers and should have set the tone for ‘Thicker Milk’; the thick reverb and distortion masking a darkly intense tune. However, sometimes this mask is on too tight and this is to the detriment of too many tracks. ‘Yllw Hss’ would have benefited from being a smidge cleaner; we’re pretty sure there’s something good hiding on ‘Ask a Comb’, but again the production is too much of an issue; and the echoing chants don’t fit tightly enough with the Tarantino riffs on ‘Thank You’. There are some great melodies here, especially in tracks like ‘Into the Void’ and ‘Ten Second Freak Out’. The beach is never far from the band’s mind, and psychedelic surf sounds purr beautifully through many of the tracks. ‘1000 Mirrors’ has a dark zombie surf feel; ‘Psychic Friends’ is all about the grinding psychedelic guitars; and ‘Be Glad’ has some good jerky psych sounds. ‘Thicker Milk’ really is a mixed bag in terms of quality. Having said that, Bowlegs is looking for forward to future releases from The Super Vacations, in the hope that they make things cleaner and more concise. DS