Not exactly a household word here, Silverchair chalk up their fifth straight number 1 album in their native Australia, and it’s a good one. Featuring singer-songwriter and guitarist Daniel Johns, the band conjure up a new approach to the Split Enz ‘downunder’ pop sound while adding a cutting edge modern touch. Breaking out in ‘95 with their debut, Johns and company are adept at crafting hooky, power pop gems and they refine their symphonic inclinations with the appearance of Van Dyke Parks, who wrote orchestrations for three Young Modern tracks. Commenting on the album Johns adds, ‘Young Modern is about acceptance.’ With each of the three band members at age 27, it looks like Silverchair have a long, promised road ahead of them. www.chairpage.com / www.elevenmusic.com

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