The second album by Melbourne band Kingswood, called After Hours, Close to Dawn is one of the greatest pieces of Australian rock music of the 21st century.

Every one of the 11 tracks has an inherent sophistication rarely seen in Australian rock music.

I don’t have enough adjectives to describe it.

Just listen to the sheer beauty and hilarity of the baritone saxophone ‘solo’ on track six Big City.

And just wait for the honky-tonk piano to start on track seven Like Your Mother.  I guarantee your hips will start wiggling just like Hugh Grant’s in that scene from Love Actually.

Track five Belle would sound equally at home in a smokey whisky bar in West Hollywood as it would on a steamy summer NYC night in Greenwich Village.  This track would send Lenny Kravtiz green with envy.

And so far we’ve only been talking about album tracks!

Click here to see the video clip for the first single Creepin. Yes, the video is a bit creepy but there’s this funk to the track which underpins the bluesy coolness of the entire album.

The double-edged lead vocal attack of Fergus Linacre and Alex Laska adds a depth and variety not seen since the pairing of Jimmy Barnes and Ian Moss.

It truly has the potential to catapult this classic hard rockin’ Melbourne pub band into a global phenomenon.

Don’t get me wrong, there’s absolutely no doubt these guys can play balls-to-the-wall rock!  Exhibit A – Medusa from EP Change of Heart.

Where some reviewers have called After Hours, Close to Dawn experimental, I heartily disagree.  After Hours, Close to Dawn IS the real Kingswood.

4 out of 5 guitars.  This is a must for your 2017 playlist.