Denmark now has something else to boast beyond the boy with his
finger in a dike the mysterious and fascinating Raveonettes! Proving that
all the good Scandinavian bands don't just come from Sweden, the Raveonettes
consists of lead singer Sune Rose Wagner and drop dead gorgeous bass player
Sharin Foo. The hype machine has been working overtime on them ever since
their debut ep Whip It On was recorded in Wagner's bedroom with the
self-imposed rule that all the songs could have no more than 3 chords and
all were written in B Minor. As boring as that sounds, it was quite an
enthralling listen, that brought to mind fond memories of dark leaders the
Jesus & Mary Chain.

None of Chain Gang of Love is in B minor though, that would just be silly.
It's all in B major. And damn near every second of it is a noisy yet melodic
piece of brilliance. You'd never guess it in this day in age, but without a
doubt, the Raveonettes biggest influences can be found in the guitar
harmonies of greats such as Buddy Holly and the Ventures, and vocally in the girl groups
such as the Shirelles, Shangri-las and partially where the band gets their
name, the Ronettes. One of the greatest songs of the year period has to be
"That Great Love Sound" where Foo pounds out a Crickets bass rhythm, and
Wagner sings "That Great Love Sound" in a way that resembles another great
sound, Phil Spector's famous Wall of Sound of the early 60's. Chain Gang of
Love is one of the few albums in years that has tried to embrace the noise
rock of today with the harmony of yesteryear and done it so effortlessly
that it must be applauded. If you call yourself a lover of music, this album
is a must.