Zeus: Classic Zeus

Michael Verity on September 11, 2014

It seems that the sun shines in Toronto, too, as the Canadian quartet Zeus slathers a rough-edged dose of Big Star rockarama with a helping of Vitamin D5-grit sandpaper and post-‘80s electronic knob-twiddling. Think Willy DeVille and Garland Jeffreys after a night in New York’s Alphabet City neighborhood (“Where Is My Love”), deep- album tracks by The Association or Love (“Straight Through the Light”), a passing glance at Violent Femmes (“Miss My Friends”) and the Raspberries with extra reverb (“First One In”). What if R.E.M. had been The Partridge Family’s backing band or Mama Cass had still been recording into the ‘80s (with Jim Dickinson at the mixing desk) or The Polyphonic Spree grew a pair? This one makes us wonder.

Artist: Zeus
Album: Classic Zeus
Label: Arts & Crafts