THE Swedes may have a reputation for being an ice-cool and reserved nation, but no-one seems to have told sharp-dressed garage rockers The Hives. It's the winning sense of fun that pervades their music that's the secret to their unlikely success.

You can see it in their likeably daft stage names - Vigilante Carlstroem and Chris Dangerous are among those lining up behind strutting frontman Howlin' Pelle Almqvist - while bass player Dr Matt Destruction could outdo his counterpart from The Darkness in the villainous moustache department.

Tyrannosaurus Hives is the hard-gigging Scandinavians' major label debut, after the worldwide success of the Your New Favourite Band compilation of their previous albums.

As its dinosaurian title suggests, it proudly shows nothing in the way of musical evolution.

The Hives still want nothing more than to sound like The Stooges fronted by Mick Jagger - they just play fast, furious rock'n'roll - and commendably, they still believe firmly in songs that don't outstay their welcome, ripping through 14 tracks in 30 minutes.

Aside from a few Sixties-style melodramatic string flourishes on Diabolic Scheme, it's safe to say that fame and major label cash hasn't changed their live-and-direct sound.

However, there's nothing on here as attention-grabbing as their breakthrough single Hate To Say I Told You So, (currently enjoying a new lease of high-profile exposure on the Olympics TV trailers), but the swaggering Walk Idiot Walk is a decent shot at it.

There might not be much more mileage left in The Hives' act, but for the moment at least, they get away with it in style.

Updated: 08:59 Thursday, July 29, 2004