The New Zealand group Guardian Singles have clearly done an exhaustive study of trends in the early American underground, specifically bands like Mission of Burma and Wipers who combined infectious punk-flavored songs with guitars that swarm like hornets and vocals that walk the line between disaffected and heartsick. Their 2020 self-titled album is a reflection of their live set, one that must have left those lucky enough to attend one of their shows with their jaws dragging on the floor. The double-guitar attack of Thom Burton and Durham Fenwick is a thing of violent beauty that usually features one of them strumming like their arm was attached to a jackhammer, while the other rips off solos and angular lines with a cracking fury. With a drummer as powerful as Fiona Campbell backing them, it makes for a sound any of their forebears would have been happy to call their own. The songs, too, are worthy of their influences and as catchy as can be. The leadoff track, "Tea Lights Exploding," blasts out of the gate with purpose as it rambles in sprightly fashion through the verses and hits the chorus running. Burton handles the vocal duties and he has a fine sneer that cuts through the maelstrom with ease. Another gem, "Roll Dead," sounds like a washing machine with an unbalanced load in the verses before the chorus breaks through like the sun on a cloudy day. Elsewhere, Guardian Singles show their talents at crafting moody, post-punk ("Being Alone"), roil up some huge clouds of staticky guitars ("Never Going to See the Rain Again"), punch hard on the very Burma-y "Can't Stop Moving," and do a fine cover of the Sound's "Heartland" that adds some ghostly keys to the mix. They even take a stab at slow, doomy post-punk balladry on "Gold Plated Cars" and do a fine job thanks to the creepy, overloaded guitars and Burton's stifled scream of a vocal. Though the band may look at the album as a starting point, it sounds like they arrived fully formed and ready to take over the world. Not a single false step or missed opportunity clutters their path, and the set holds all kinds of promise for their future. If they can build on the power and near perfection of this record, there's a strong chance that 20 years from this point people will mention Guardian Singles in the same breath as their heroes.