Sweetheart XOXOX review - the Georgia Straight

XOXOX (Independent)
Sweetheart might not be the most prolific act around—this six-track release is the first we’ve heard from the band since its debut LP came out in 2007—but its songs display an attention to detail that suggests it hasn’t spent the past four years perfecting its hair.
It’s not that Sweetheart’s compositions are particularly complex, though. Quite the opposite is true, but economy is the group’s greatest strength. Witness “London Girl”: built on a rock-solid foundation of churning power chords, the song surges forward and explodes into its chorus with a burst of melody that will resonate with anyone who ever wondered why the Killers got huge and Stellastarr didn’t.
Which is another way of saying that if you like your power pop crisply played and tightly arranged, you could do a lot worse than numbers like the punkish opener “Perfect” or the synth-buzzed closing salvo “Less Conversation”. The latter finds frontman Marty Zylstra howling emotively on the chorus without ever losing sight of the hook, which is something he seems to have dead in his sights at all times.
(Jon Lucas - Georgia Straight)

Sweetheart "XOXOX" EP Review: reposted from Beatroute (November 2011 issue)

One of Vancouver's soaring power pop bands, Sweetheart, return to the grind with their latest EP, the unsurprisingly titled, six-track, XOXOX. Fans of Sweetheart will find no unexpected surprises on this 20-minute EP, though it is by no means a disappointment. It is clear that the trio have found their pocket and are quite comfortable in it, letting their own chops shine through with little regard to the "correct" way of doing things.
     The album opens with "Perfect" before quickly moving into the hilariously titled "David Bowie is Dead?", a Britpop track that should entice disillusioned twenty-somethings across Canada.  Over a strong, driving, backbeat, frontman Marty Zylstra sings, "Your boyfriend said/That your girlfriend said/David Bowie is dead." These are not the most complicated arrangements on the planet, but such is the emotional import behind the band that the simplicity works in their favour, letting their hearts burn brightly on their sleeves.
     Album standout, "London Girl," sounds cool and sophisticated, opening with a subdued line that gradually opens up into the chorus. Sweetheart cast direct lines to their influences across the ocean in England, such that you could easily mistake them for the bands that gained popularity in the early 2000s like Franz Ferdinand, the Strokes, or even America's take on it all, The Killers.
     "Dance all day until you feel alright," screams Zylstra on "London Girl," his head thrown back for added reach.  Take their advice: you'll feel awesome.
- Sebastian Buzzalino
From Beatroute Magazine, November 2011