You may know Ben Cook as the guitarist in Canadian punk band Fucked Up, but his solo project, Young Guv, demonstrates his broad music taste and undeniable song writing talent. Last year, he unleashed a two-part album “GUV I & II” via Run For Cover Records, which boasted pretty, lo-fi guitar pop songs with a ravishing melancholia. After early-to-mid-2000s stints in hardcore bands No Warning and Fucked Up, it’s safe to say Toronto-based singer/songwriter Ben Cook has found his bliss since setting out on his own as Young Guv. From his 2015 debut “Ripe 4 Luv” to today’s “GUV III”, his third release on Run for Cover Records, Cook has been putting out hooky, throwback guitar pop that sounds more like a ray of sunshine than a sock in the jaw.
You’ll know whether you’re onboard with GUV III within seconds, as opener “Couldn’t Leave U If I Tried” leads the way with textbook jangle-pop a la Teenage Fanclub or Matthew Sweet.
“Every Flower I See” by Young Guv from the album ‘GUV I’ out August 2nd, 2019 via Run For Cover Records.
The record maintains that buoyant tone all the way through, folding in power-pop (“Lo Lo Lonely”), psychedelia (“Scam Likely”) and even a touch of the orchestral (“April of My LIfe”) along the way. What’s to stop Cook’s bliss from becoming your own?
The Fat Angel Sings 