What Did You Expect from The Vaccines?

Good thing they came out when they did, because otherwise they'd be cancelled by RFK, Jr. Fucking asshole. This is a terrific album. 12 songs. 35 minutes. Doesn't get boring. I wonder if under your thumb is their response to the stones, under my thumb.

This was not a good album. Most of the songs were actively irritating to listen to. Post breakup sex is particularly obnoxious. There is so much bland indie music on the post-list, it makes me wonder how people who enjoy it got through the variety of interesting music on the main list.

This felt like a pretty middle of the road forgettable catchy indie album from the 2010s. A dime a dozen for sure.

Great garage rock album by The Vaccines. A lot of energy and attitude in direct songs. Reminds of the Jesus and Mary Chain (reverb) and Arctic Monkeys (debut album).

Yeah this is, in fact, pretty much exactly what I expected

What did I expect from The Vaccines? Inoffensive and mildly boring post-punk revival and garage rock, which is more or less what I got, though it is a lot poppier than I expected. The Vaccines are good at hooks, to their credit, but I don't really find any other aspect of the album interesting. I started the user list specifically to avoid albums like this. Should it have been on the main list: No. This is Dimery-core so I'm a little surprised it wasn't on, but we don't need more of this kind of music. Top 3 songs: Wreckin Bar (Ra Ra Ra), If You Wanna, Post Break-Up Sex

Elementary school rhymes for lyrics ruin the depth and plain vanilla melodies make it middling

I think I’ve heard of The Vaccines before, but I don’t think I’ve ever heard anything by them. I tend to enjoy albums from this era though, so I’m excited to fire this up! Man, this was a fun rock album. I don’t know why, but it’s always a pleasant surprise to me when a band whose sound is pretty straight-forward rock manages to make something that feels unique and inspired. This album had some great guitar playing and energy, and I loved the lo-fi production of the overall sound. “Wreckin’ Bar” started this album off really strong, and from there, the album never looked back. While the more energetic songs were my favorite part of this album, The Vaccines also do a great job when they slow it down a bit, like on “Wetsuit.” My only complaint with this album is that the last two tracks ended this album with a whimper, but that can’t take away the fun I had on “If You Wanna” and “Norgaard.” This is a really solid rock album, and I think it could easily take the place of something like The Libertines on the main list. What a great submission!

Rock, Pop: Alternative Rock, Post Punk.

9/10 super catchy! really dig this specific wave of alt rock :)

Loved a couple of the singles when this came out, I probably should have listened to the whole album back then. Very cool surf/punk simplicity but with kind of ethereal shoegaze atmosphere at times. Norgaard and If You Wanna put it on a 4 and the rest of the album does enough to nudge it to a 5.

One of the best suggestions after the original list so far. Only knew 1 song, but great album!

I'd heard of the band but didn't know the music. Brilliant!

I have not heard of The Vaccines and was skeptical. This hit just right and I was surprised to really love it! Listened to it several times today.

Amazing surf-rock! I Remember the singles doing very good in the charts. The energy fits just right

What did I expect from The Vaccines? I haven't heard of them before, so nothing really, but I had a nice time with this album. I really like the upbeat energy that persists throughout most of this album. The instrumentation that provokes it is pretty good, with the reverbed guitars having a nice tone to them, and I like the vocals. It all makes for a nice, pleasant vibe, and the two more emotional songs that end the album are neat too. The two opening tracks, Wreckin' Bar and If You Wanna, display these qualities well and they are very enjoyable. Though, the songwriting can be pretty average, and even a bit creepy at points sadly, like on Norgaard. Tracks can feel a bit average and meh too, which doesn't particularly evoke anything out of me even if I like how they sound. That isn't to say I got no enjoyment out of this though. I like the vibe this thing is going on, and I'm glad I gave it my time. It's not perfect, but What Did You Expect is neat for what it is for the most part.

If You Wanna // Post Break-Up Sex // 3.5/5

Not particularly original, but fun.

This album was the kind of indie music I enjoy! I can be picky with the indie genre, but good lyrics and beats kept me engaged. The Vaccines’ energy reminded me of fun., whose music I also enjoy. My sister, who enjoys indie music more than me, liked the album, or what she heard of it as she got ready in the morning. She’s a huge fan of fun., which validated my opinion. 3.5, but enough to round up. Also, a cute album name for a debut.

That sounds like The Strokes. That sounds like Weezer. I’m absolutely down to clown with both of those bands. I knew nothing about The Vaccines. I need to get immunised!

I really enjoyed that one. Thanks for adding it.

I kept thinking that this sounds like an indie version of The Killers. And by "indie", I mean properly "indie". Not the "sells out huge worldwide stadium tours but sounds kind of indie" indie rock. For the record, I kinda like The Killers but The Vaccines feel a lot more down to earth. Very good album.

One's largely aged out of such urgent, high-energy rock (even indie rock) but can still easily appreciate the merits of the more windswept, soaring cuts (e.g., "A Lack of Understanding"). Beyond the obvs Franz F-Strokes-Arctic Monkeys lineage, V's remind one of Fontaines DC (and thus and IDLES, too, and maybe Protomartyr, too, recently heard from the user list). One's reassured such strong direct hook-forward music is being made by young people – and it seems an accurate reflection of what one remembers of being young (lots of yearning, lots of energy, lots of hope). Songs about post-break-up sex are particularly welcome. As for the hype, one missed it so can't say whether or not this record validates it or no; all one can say that this rocks crisply, credibly and (crucially) non-doofily, in the best sense of indie rock.

I don’t know what I expected; I was deep into my German techno/Scandi-stoner-rock odyssey when this came out and I’d heard of them but never heard them. But I quite like it. It’s short (as albums like this should be) and it has that kind of distant, echoey production that makes it feel slightly disconnected and detached, in that bleak and wintry way that all Christmas songs should sound.

Yeah, I remember the hype about that one in 2011. That was during the tail end of the retro-rock wave, and The Vaccines had just managed to make the cut at the eleventh hour. Good for them, I guess. I even bought a cheap secondhand copy of this debut many years after, when that trend was already in the rearview mirror. I did it because this album is excellent beyond any concerns about ephemeral hypes and passing music fads. The production values feel a bit "safe" sometimes, but the tracklist is filled to the brim with instantly catchy earworms, which is never as easy to write as one may think. And even if the whole thing is derivative to a degree (think Beach Boys meets Ramones meets The Strokes, which is already quite a circular stream of influences, lol), you can't deny the talent and effort that has been put into those songs. If you wrote a book about that retro-rock wave in the noughts and how it invaded the mainstream, *Is This It?* could be the first chapter, and *What Did You Expect from The Vaccines?* would be the last. Maybe indeed that's enough to consider it as "essential", somehow. 3.5/5 for the purposes of this list of essential albums, rounded up to 4. 8.5/10 for more general purposes: 5 + 3.5. Number of albums from the original list I find relevant enough to be mandatory listens: 465 Albums from the original list I *might* include in mine later on: 288 Albums from the original list I won't include in mine: 336 ----- Number of albums from the users list I find relevant enough to be mandatory listens: 47 Albums from the users list I *might* select for mine later on: 60 (including this one) Albums from the users list I won't select for mine: 111 --- Hey, Émile. J'ai enfin trouvé le temps de répondre ! Regarde sous la review de *Young, Loud And Snotty* des Dead Boys !

Good enough. Giving it a 4 cos it’s been a long time since a half decent one.

Another unknown, solid selection.

It's like modern punk pop with a Ramones/Phil Specter vibe. Very Enjoyable.

One of the best uk indie rock albums at the time, albeit wasn’t much competition during this period. Listening back now it has aged well. Not quite a masterpiece but Worthy of my frequent rotation.

This is the kinda indie bullshit I am open to. It's been hit or miss on this list but this hit. My personal rating: 4/5 My rating relative to the list: 4/5 Should this have been included on the original list? No.

Irreverent and naughty pop punk

Rating: 8/10 Best songs: Wreckin’ bar, If you wanna, Blow it up, Wetsuit, Family friend

Used to listen to this album all the time, however never allowed myself to fully appreciate it due to the link with the types of people who use sepia- Instagram filters and yes it's not doing anything amazing but enjoyed the music it was providing all over again.

This is a great energetic alt-punk record. Seems smartly written, with a nice assembly of catchy pieces. Enjoyed this quite a bit.

I enjoyed a good rockin time

Good indie rock sound. Never goes too hard but always has fun. Occasionally dips into the folky sound that was popular in the early 2010s, but does not feel of a piece with that genre as a whole.

So good Bordering 5 4

# In-Depth Review: *What Did You Expect from The Vaccines?* **Released:** 21 March 2011 | **Label:** Columbia | **Producer:** Dan Grech-Marguerat | **Length:** ~35 minutes --- ## The Context: Hype, Backlash, and a Snarky Title The Vaccines' debut arrived in March 2011 under a cloud of almost comical expectation. The London four-piece had formed barely nine months earlier, yet by January they had placed third in the BBC's Sound of 2011 poll, graced magazine covers, and were being talked about as potential saviours of British guitar music . The album's title—a pre-emptive shrug of defiance—was the band's own acknowledgement of the impossible weight placed upon it. As The Guardian noted, *What Did You Expect from The Vaccines?* "defensively pre-empts anticlimax" while also "shrugs off criticism with brattish insouciance" . The result is a record that, viewed on its own terms, is a taut, energetic, and occasionally brilliant collection of indie rock songs—but one whose limitations become glaring when measured against its own mythology. --- ## Music: Retro-Fitted, Immediate, and Unashamedly Derivative The Vaccines' sound on this record is a deliberate collage of rock history, filtered through a distinctly British, post-Strokes lens. The band themselves admitted their ambition was to take "that Americana surf sound" and give it "a British spin" . What emerges is a sonic palette that draws heavily from: - **The Strokes** (particularly *Room on Fire*-era riffs and the chugging rhythm section) - **The Ramones** (the 84-second burst of "Wreckin' Bar (Ra Ra Ra)") - **Jesus and Mary Chain** (reverb-soaked guitars and pop-punk tension) - **Joy Division/Editors** (the melancholic undertow of "A Lack of Understanding") Critics were divided on whether this was homage or mere imitation. Slant Magazine argued the band "develop a charming niche without ever offering anything new or innovative," while NME countered that the songs were "too damn good to be sniffy about" and even floated the album as a potential "British equivalent" to *Is This It* . The truth likely sits between: the Vaccines rarely break new ground, but they execute their chosen formula with unusual precision and energy. The pacing is relentless. Tracks rarely exceed three minutes, and the album's 35-minute runtime feels like a deliberate statement of intent: get in, make an impression, get out. This brevity works best on the frenetic opener and the punchy "Nørgaard," but it also means some songs feel underdeveloped—ideas that could have been explored are abandoned in favour of another chorus. --- ## Lyrics: Thrown-Together Urgency vs. Genuine Vulnerability Lyrically, the album is a mixed bag, oscillating between genuinely affecting moments and passages that strain credibility. **The Weaknesses:** The most common criticism levelled at the Vaccines' debut was the quality of Justin Young's lyrics. The Guardian described them as not pausing "to worry about how much sense they're making," citing the opening of "All in White"—"Break me on the 37th hour / Tout me, doubt me, show me all of your power"—as an example of solemn-sounding nonsense . "Wetsuit" drew particular scorn from BBC reviewers, who called its lyrics "so painfully bad, it's hard to take its soaring melodies seriously" . The repeated "Put a wetsuit on, come on, come on / Grow your hair out long" refrain does have a certain adolescent charm, but it's hard to defend as poetry. "Nørgaard" also raised eyebrows with its depiction of a seventeen-year-old romantic interest, described by NME as "mildly creepy" . **The Strengths:** Where Young succeeds is in capturing a specific mood of youthful malaise and romantic confusion. "Post Break-Up Sex" is the album's most complete lyrical achievement—a "sublime sketch of that insensitively cute idiom, all guilt-ridden and relatable" . The song captures the peculiar hollow of intimacy without connection. "If You Wanna" manages to be both breezy and regretful, its cheerful melody masking a narrator who can't quite let go. And the closing tracks reveal a depth the rest of the album only hints at: "Family Friend" and the hidden "Somebody Else's Child" find Young singing about father-son disconnect and vulnerability with a directness that suggests his folky past as Jay Jay Pistolet . Young's delivery is crucial here. He has a "knack for making thrown-together lyrics sound urgent," and his "oddly emotive quaver" lends weight to lines that might otherwise fall flat . When he asks "Are you ready, are you ready, are you ready for this?" on "A Lack of Understanding," the earnestness cuts through the posturing . --- ## Production: Polished to a Fault? Producer Dan Grech-Marguerat (who recorded the album at Miloco's Square studio in Hoxton) gave the Vaccines a sound that was immediate and radio-friendly but perhaps too clean for some tastes . The album's reverb-heavy aesthetic became a point of contention. Years later, Young admitted the band "hid behind a lot of reverb and walls on the first record," suggesting even they felt the production masked something . The BBC review noted that the album's "rawer, less-than-perfect moments" were what made it interesting—implying that the polished tracks were less so . Slant's criticism was more pointed: "any trace of feedback or distortion has been eradicated to leave just a Fratelli-esque singalong punk-pop sheen" . The production prioritises clarity and punch over grit, which serves the pop-oriented tracks ("If You Wanna," "Post Break-Up Sex") but somewhat undermines the more emotionally raw material. When the band strips back—as on the final tracks—the effect is disproportionately powerful. --- ## Themes: Youth, Nostalgia, and the Fear of Growing Up The album's thematic core is an anxious relationship with time and adulthood. Songs repeatedly invoke youth as something slipping away: - **"Wetsuit"** : "If at some point we all succumb / For goodness sake, let us be young" - **"Family Friend"** : "You wanna get young but you're just getting older / And you had a fun summer but it's suddenly colder" - **"A Lack of Understanding"** : The desperate plea "Are you ready for this?" feels like someone trying to hold onto a moment before it passes This preoccupation with youth extends to the music itself—the Ramones-indebted brevity, the surf-rock guitars, the refusal to overstay a welcome. The Vaccines are less interested in exploring complexity than in capturing a feeling: the heady, fleeting rush of being young and not entirely sure what you're doing. Relationships, particularly casual ones, are the other dominant theme. "Post Break-Up Sex," "If You Wanna," and "Under Your Thumb" all circle around the messy aftermath of intimacy. The album's perspective is consistently that of someone slightly bewildered by their own actions—aware of the emptiness but unable to resist. --- ## Influence: A Catalyst, Not a Revolution The Vaccines' debut arrived at a pivotal moment for British guitar music. As Clash noted, the charts in early 2011 were dominated by "the drab R&B/dance crossovers of JLS and The Wanted," and the album helped reignite mainstream appetite for indie . The subsequent rise of Peace, alt-J, and Wolf Alice can, in part, be traced to the market conditions the Vaccines helped create . However, the album's influence was more as a catalyst than a blueprint. Unlike *Is This It* or *Whatever People Say I Am, That's What I'm Not*—records that spawned countless imitators—*What Did You Expect* didn't inspire a wave of bands trying to sound exactly like it. Its legacy is more about proving that guitar bands could still achieve commercial and cultural relevance in a post-Arctic Monkeys landscape. The band themselves have continued to evolve, moving through studio experimentation (*English Graffiti*) and ragged rock (*Combat Sports*) with a restlessness that this debut only hinted at . --- ## Pros and Cons | **Pros** | **Cons** | |-----------|----------| | Relentless energy and immediacy—the album never drags | Lyrics often feel tossed-off or nonsensical ("Wetsuit," "All in White") | | Genuinely memorable hooks, particularly on "If You Wanna" and "Post Break-Up Sex" | Sonic debt to The Strokes and others is so pronounced it borders on pastiche | | The closing tracks ("Family Friend," "Somebody Else's Child") reveal unexpected emotional depth | Production can feel over-polished, sanding down the rawer edges that might have served the songs better | | Young's voice has a distinctive quaver that elevates weaker material | Some tracks feel underdeveloped—brevity sometimes reads as unfinished rather than punchy | | Captures a specific mood of youthful anxiety with authenticity | The album's title and attitude invite scrutiny it doesn't always withstand | | Served as a commercial gateway for guitar music in a hostile chart environment | "Nørgaard" and its depiction of a 17-year-old are uncomfortable in a way the band likely didn't intend | --- ## Final Verdict *What Did You Expect from The Vaccines?* is a debut that succeeds most when it stops trying to live up to its title. The loud, fast, Ramones-indebted tracks are fun but forgettable; the slower, more vulnerable moments—"A Lack of Understanding," the closing trio—are where the band reveals what they might become. The album's ultimate irony is that the hype that surrounded its release has aged worse than the music itself. Stripped of the context of early 2011, it stands as a solid, occasionally thrilling indie rock record: not the revolution it was sold as, but not the disappointment its critics claimed either. As Q Magazine put it, there's "more than enough here to justify their talk-of-the-town status"—but perhaps not quite enough to justify the talk of saving guitar music .

Favourite songs: Norgaard, Under Your Thumb, Wetsuit, If You Wanna, All In White Least favourite songs: Wreckin' Bar (Ra Ra Ra) 3/5

I honestly expected more. 3/5

Yea this was cool, though I think there are a few bands at the time doing this sound better and albums i liked better. not bad, just sort of predictable?

Dopadljivo

The first couple of songs are very Ramones-like with more reverb and too obvious autotune. They switch to arctic monkeys style garage rock later on the album. It's all been done better before, but it's easy to listen to and over before it gets boring.

I expected nothing from the Vaccines. And ultimately, I was neither impressed nor disappointed. Fine, fine.

This sounded like if Morrissey made a punk album. Was just alright pretty smack middle 3

Sounded like The Killers, The Kooks, and The Smiths at one point another. Another way to say "a perfectly fine album".

This was solid enough. Nothing to really push the needle but definitely enjoyed it.

Indie landfill with a couple of good songs.

This was a pretty quick album! All in all, it was a fine blend of indie/garage pop/rock. However, it wasn't incredibly memorable for me.

Best Song: Wetsuit. Really liked the drum rhythm here. Worst Song: Post Break-Up Sex. A really disappointing song, because it felt like they had found a nice little vocal melody and then decided to ride it into the ground. A good thing repeated enough times becomes a bad thing. Overall: Very okay. Wildly middle-of-the-road. I don't dislike it, it doesn't excite me. It feels like music that you hear in car or clothing commercials. It's fine.

Always had it in the indie landfills category. I think it inspired a lot of echoey indie pop bands. It was ok

More Indie Landfill. I remember when this came out everyone was hailing them to be the next "saviours of rock". They weren't. Posh lads with guitars make passable music, but I suppose they understood the hype and named the album suitably. It's not bad, and it has some catchy hooks, when you're listening to it, but it's all pretty forgettable in the end. Best Tracks: Wreckin' Bar (Ra Ra Ra); If You Wanna; Norgaard

some kind of pre-noel gallagher

Extremely 2011. 2.5/5

Nothing much to say. It sounded like a common and standard album to me. They did their homework to become a roack band

This album has two very different faces. One is fast, energetic, and genuinely fun. The other is slower, more drawn out, and considerably less interesting. When The Vaccines keep the tempo high, this works extremely well. “Wreckin’ Bar,” “If You Wanna,” and “Nørgaard” are full of energy, strong melodies, and that simple singalong quality that good indie-rock needs. It’s not innovative, but at this point rock rarely is, and the band compensates with conviction and strong melodies. The problem is that too many songs slow things down, and once that happens the limitations start to show. Tracks like “Blow It Up” and “Wetsuit” drift into that polished early-2010s British indie sound that reminds me a bit too much of White Lies, a band I never fully connected with. Ironically, one of the slower songs, “A Lack of Understanding,” ended up becoming one of my favorites. Along with “Post Break-Up Sex,” makes it a very enjoyable indie-rock album when it’s moving

Indie rock, surf punk, garage pop. Ni fu ni fa.

Catchy, energetic, unchallenging, fun all the way through.

Känns som man hört detta förut utan att ha hört det förut. Fullt godkänd platta.

Vaccinated

very melacholy, but catchy hooks! 3.

3.5

A grandiose shouting style of indie rock, very of the time. Imagine Dragons sort of became the culmination of this style's direction, which unfortunately scuffs up a lot of this kind of thing for me in hindsight. It's a fun trip down memory lane, though.

Not my style, but solid nonetheless!

What DID I expect from The Vaccines? I guess I expected 35 minutes of catchy if not especially impressive early 2010s indie rock that straddles the line between that Vampire Weekend-esque special spark and trademark landfill indie. And this met my expectations. If You Wanna is a great tune, and Post Break-Up Sex is really well written. Other than that it’s generally a good time (except one pretty sus song about going on a date with a 17 year old) but slightly formulaic and forgettable.

I knew more of these tracks than I thought I would. If this album had come out earlier in my life I think it would have been a firm favourite.

I know of The Vaccines and know a few of their tracks, but never heard this album. I like "If You Wanna" although I'm not a big dan. "A Lack of Understanding" is better IMO. The rest was alright, but nothing amazing.

Great listen. It fits favorably with the time period

This was pretty good. Nothing memorable but nothing bad.

Very generic. Close my eyes and it could have been any of those bands. Fine though,.

Some catchy songs here, a solid 3.5

Real nice actually

Yawn

A perfect example of a “so that’s where that song is from” album. Rest was alright too.

Yeah, decent, if not spectacular

This has a SHITLOAD of plays on Spotify but I've never even heard of it. I've usually at least heard OF an artist at this point, but nope. Don't recognise the big single, either. Anyway, just kinda average indie rock. Bit retro leaning. Probably UK. 3/5.

Indie rock, surf punk, garage pop. Ni fu ni fa.

Not sure what I expected with this - something more on the punk end of the spectrum I guess. But I liked it OK. Well performed and decently smart lyrics but maybe a little musically unambitious.

This was fun, with a nice crisp pace and some solid hooks. Treads no new musical ground, but I enjoyed it. Fave Songs: A Lack of Understanding, Blow It Up, Family Friend, If You Wanna, Wreckin' Bar (Ra Ra Ra)

Not a bad indie rock album. It’s pretty much right on the verge of pop and alternative. Some of the songs are really teenager in vibe but a few of them were alright for an early 10s album. The British rock style comes through which is usually a better alternative style than some later modern ameeican bands. 6.5/10

Brit pop that could potentially turn you into an Anti-vaxxer. boring, uninteresting, and completely forgettable.

Honestly, I think I expected a bit more. I remember liking one or two of their songs at the time and this is bouncy enough. But it got a bit repetitive after a few songs. And I don't like the voice, even though i couldn't tell you why.

Short and sweet - which was a blessing as that was all that I could tolerate. Indie shite doesn't speak to me. How the chuff are you expected to dance to this nonsense? Some of the Pixies bass line pricked up my interest. But that was about it I'm afraid.

What Did You Expect From The Vaccines? Not a lot, it's an exercise in how to sound entirely like a bunch of acts that came before you and not do much if anything to further the genre or stand out from the many trying it. That means it's generally listenable but super boring and derivative and gets a 2/5. I'll never listen to it again.

Nothing new brought to the party I'm afraid. The singer started to remind me of Chris Martin part of the way through. The sort of record they put on at the end of a college student party when all the alcohol has been drunk and people are thinking of going home.

Yeah that was basically exactly what I was expecting from The Vaccines. What if Interpol made car commercial music.

Nice enough

Catchy hooks? Absolutely. But they’re the kind that feel like they were assembled in a pop-punk IKEA kit—three chords, some gloss, and a manual titled “How to Sound Edgy Without Actually Being Edgy.” It’s all very safe, very polished, and very... expected. The kind of album that makes you nod along while wondering if your playlist accidentally looped. What Did You Expect from The Vaccines? Well, at least a bit more than an album that feels like 'punk rock with a helmet on'.

Tiptoes between a 2 and 3 for me. The instrumentals are great, invoking early-aughts Interpol with a touch of gazey reverb and delay that makes for some great atmospheric tracks, but the vocals/lyrics feel so flat and obsessed with high-school level drama. Found myself getting worn out by the end as there's not many dynamic elements in the songwriting to make things sound varied and interesting.

I wasn't very impressed with their style. I suppose they have a solid fanbase, but I don't think the vocalist is as good as the other musicians. Sorry.

Like a time capsule to the late noughties. The music was tedious mediocrity, but boy did they wear Top Man well and have almost too perfect scruffy hair. A happier time, maybe, but the music was crap, made only to sound risible E4 yoof sitcoms and reality shows.