It’s a pretty gutsy move for a band to open an album with a full choir declaring “We’re here to save the world.” When these are the first lines of your debut album, it’s even riskier. Yet something about The Galvatrons makes you believe them.
Just like that dramatic opening, Laser Graffiti is an album impossible to ignore. Everything is big: the guitars, the synth chords, and ego. But that’s the point. This is a disc which takes its cues from Van Halen, Queen’s Flash Gordon soundtrack, and the pretentious hair bands of the 80s. Some might accuse it of being derivative, but it also sounds like nothing else on the modern music landscape.
The Galvatrons wear their influences and hearts on their sleeve. They may be flamboyant, but their unwavering belief in that vision encourages listeners to go along for the ride. The band captures our imagination with lyrics about driving the car too fast, staying out all night, and skipping school. Those familiar themes are so appealing to someone of my vintage who remembers hearing them first on Poison and Bon Jovi albums, and they might just inspire today’s rebellious teens.
The Galvatrons are either crazy or geniuses. No one makes a record like this today. Yet as the closing strains of the final track “Galaxy Destroyer” repeated the refrain, “We’re here to save the world,” I believed them. They won’t do it by reversing climate change or ending any wars. But The Galvatrons compel us to punch our fists in the air and remember how good music can feel, and that’s a start.
Image source: Cream; Newscom