Dios - We Are Dios (Buddyhead)

Let’s be honest. You’re all thinking it, after all: any time you put on a bit of Frank Sinatra you get exactly what you expected. Don’t bother trying to think of a time when Old Blue Eyes proved this statement wrong. You won’t get anywhere. In fact, you’ll most likely come up with a whole bunch of times when he turned out exactly the same way as before.

If, when picking up We Are Dios, you’re expecting a similar trip, you can put that record down right now and go buy something else, thank you very much. Unable to tell from which corner they’re coming, Dios have a jolly good bash at ripping you from your comfort zone. Then, when you’ve finally had a sit down at got settled in your new surroundings, they send you home, only to find that they have taken such home, turned it upside-down, inside-out and inserted expertly into some unchosen orafice. The strangest thing of all being that you begin to quite like it, sticking your hand up politely to ask for more.

Kick-starting like a scene from Blade Runner, the clatters and whirrs of 'Epilectic Tunnel Vision' and 'Ojay' make for a surefire way to assure you stay in your seat and listen closely. Leaving you slightly confused, the four boys from California then take you on a ride through 'No Is Wrong': a glorious indie road trip that has the wind whip through your hair as you smile stupidly. A better way of desribing such track may be if Beck were to have punched all three Hanson boys in the face simultaneously. The gleeful happiness continues, as voices are lowered and cats are seemingly thrown about the room in 'Toss My Cookies': a psychadelic-rock turn on Alice’s wonderland.

These four young Californian lads may seem new on the scene, but far from it. Already having worked with Shins and Modest Mouse producer Phil Ek on previous effort dios (malos), Dios decided to go back to basics with lo-fi equipment, personal studios and commitment to all that which is weird and wonderful, focusing on bending as many genres as possible.

With such an objective, artists can sometimes fall short of performing and spread themselves too thinly, but Dios seem to be able to pull it off. Amalgamating gnome-like rave folk ('I Don’t Wanna Marry You') and Middle Earth sea-shanties ('Oh Don’t Feel Bad'), We Are Dios works on so many levels that you can’t possibly tire of it. If anything, you’ll go straight to their website to see when they’re playing near you so you can join the circus.