There's something wildly accessible about Ongoing Dispute, the new album from Danish band Yung. And that's only worth mentioning since the band's on PNKSLM. And while that imprint is one of my faves, and has been for years now, PNKSLM's not famous for offering up anything too mainstream. Now, this band certainly aren't going to be mistaken for Imagine Dragons, but the tunes here are direct and reminiscent of things like Wire Train, The Bolshoi, and The Chameleons, groups who did much to advance the audience for alt-rock.
"Lust and Learning" swirls and unfolds atop multiple guitar hooks, while "Dismantled" reveals a nearly goth-worthy fascination with the undercurrents of a strong riff. Yung imbue all of this stuff with layers that reward a careful listener, and yet, like those bands from earlier decades, make everything easy to enjoy. That's why I mentioned those past alt-rock acts above, and tried to draw a line from that kind of guitar rock to what's here on Ongoing Dispute.
What I most liked about Yung's record was that it had music that aimed for the back of the stadium. "Such a Man", for example, roars out of the gate, and while this band are relatively new, their sound is huge. Some of this sounds like Yank bands from ages ago, like The Call, but Yung are less interested in making anthems, and more interested in texture. It's just that the sonic explorations throughout Ongoing Dispute are loud ones, with the players in this Danish group revealing both ambition and an understanding of texture that's wildly impressive.
Ongoing Dispute is out on Friday via PNKSLM.
More details on Yung via the band's official Facebook page.
[Photo: Daniel Hjorth]