It Wings Above

The Cheepskates' fourth album is rooted in some of the same 1960s rock that informed their early work, but also has a somewhat more modern power pop and alt-rock sensibility. One of the chief traits distinguishing this from other retro-sounding groups is the light and winsome tonality of Shane Faubert's lead vocals, which contrasts heavily with the generic snot-brat garage attitude many revivalist-style combos adopt. There's a little bit of a surf thrust to the tempo and percussive drive of some of the tunes, which are generally airy and peppy love tunes. It's not a major accomplishment, but it's fairly pleasant pop-rock that's neither insipid nor crude. The CD version includes an extra track, the "electric version" of "Everytime You Change Your Mind."