I can see this being one of those Marmite albums; it’s difficult to imagine someone not holding strong feelings for it one way or another. Personally, I think Oh No Not Stereo’s brand of sunny, genre bending pop-rock is an enjoyable concoction, and a pleasant change from the heavier musical climes that I frequent, but it could just as easily be denounced as turgid, overproduced pap by cynical listeners; it’s all a matter of perspective. One fact is difficult to avoid though, regardless of which side of the fence you come down on, namely that it’s incredibly easy to see them becoming huge.

While the core of these fifteen songs is consistently a nugget of pure pop sensibility, an array of other styles are dragged into its orbit, spanning everything from pop punk to blues rock, via the kind of big budget, hi-octane thrills that you might expect from two LA residents. Packed with potential radio hits (‘Hurricanes’, ‘Let’s get it started’, and the dark hearted ballad, ‘A world of your own.’) ONNS are shooting straight for the mp3 players of teens everywhere, and consistently hitting the bull’s eye. While the fifty minute running time may stretch the patience of some, the album is admirably varied in tone and tempo, ensuring it avoids becoming repetitive.

Looking at the credits for ‘003,’ it’s evident that both Sky Nielsen and Mykul Lee are accomplished musical polymaths, between them playing an array of instruments from piano to bass guitar. Managing to incorporate all of these ingredients into one cohesive album seems difficult, but ONNS pull it off the majority of the time, perhaps elevating them above the mass of aspiring pop-rock outfits in the process.

To avoid the pitfalls of overly saccharine hooks and syrupy choruses entirely while playing this kind of music is nearly impossible, so naturally there are moments where the track grates or sounds derivative, but these moments are few and far between. Having already began to conquer the mainstream stateside, it’s only a matter of time before the buzz starts up on our shores; from then on, love it or hate it, they’ll be impossible to avoid. Can you feel the charts trembling?

Rating Out of 10: