Rating: 4 out of 5

Skybombers soar on whirling ‘Carousel’

“BLACK CAROUSEL,” Skybombers (429)

On the Skybombers’ song “One for Two,” lead vocalist Hugh Gurney offers some wisdom he’s picked up here and there: “Don’t love someone who doesn’t love you ... One can’t be loving for two.”

That’s good advice, and it’s a good thing he doesn’t follow it on the Australian band’s new “Black Carousel” because Gurney’s romantic misjudgments help feed the fire of his group’s tight release.

Brimming with the quirk typical of their homeland, the feisty Skybombers reference obvious great predecessors from the Stones to U2 to Green Day. But in spirit they feel more like an Australian version of The Who for a new generation. The Skybombers are energetic, cheeky and don’t take themselves too seriously — except for their musicianship, which is borne out in infectious electricity and diverse-enough range.

The group establishes its voice and produces a “Black Carousel” that’s a cohesive whole rather than a random mass of songs. Even the filler tracks — an “I Could Tell You Something” that doesn’t say much and an ’80s-inflected “Can’t Say No” that fails to gel — have a sense of purpose.

Meanwhile, there’s nothing fancy about the snarling “Love Me Like You Used To Do” that crackles with raw vitality, but the hook won’t be denied, and there’s a classic-rock vibe in the versatile “Daylight Savings Season” that can function as both a celebration of summer and a warning about global warming. The band also digs in for an effective dirty blues spin on the title track, punctuated by Gurney’s gritty vocals, while closer “Jenny and the Night” is deceptively light with its “la-la-da-da” chorus when it appears to be the tale of an abused woman out for revenge.

However, the group’s most clever turn is its tribute to dishonesty, “Lies,” where the singer rides a careening cadence as he debunks “the truth will set you free” by countering with, “I find it easier to lie/Straight through my teeth and with a smile.”

These punks are endearing.

Rating: 4