Flesh and Paper

Better Set Your Phasers To Stun

Short and Sweet

Pop! Vol. 1

Last Chance for Friday’s Badge

Friday Night and Last Chance deliver the bands Buzzcock influenced (s)punky pop sound over songs that last for little over two minutes which means a big, big thumbs up in my book. They slow things down on final track The Badge but the joint vocals work to great effect especially when M Mar’s voice kick in as the guitars start to fuzz and the chorus starts.

My first thought when I heard the lyrics is how similar it was to Helen Love only for the aforementioned to chip in with some vocals half way through.  There are two further remixes but the opening single mix is the one that gets the thumbs up from me. As it’s a maxi single (didn’t know those still existed) it comes with two further tracks. Beach Party UFO is vinatge 1980′s synth pop whilst Disgow Glasgow moves the sound on a decade being of a rave/indie dance persuasion. It’s retro fun and bouncy throwaway pop music to the boot.

The bands sound is a mix of jangle pop, agit-pop plus hints of the classic sound of 60′s girl groups. However it’s lead singer Imogen’s vocals that stand out. Rather than dominate the music, as say D. Lucille Campbell’s voice does with Help Stamp Out Loneliness, they supplement the music to a tee. It’s on Penny On The Floor where this is best demonstrated. That said it’s not the only stand out track here. Taste Of Superglue is a jangle feast that would be worthy of  filling the dancefloor at indiepop discos up and down the country whilst Money Smile and Days Are Quick are more than worthy substitutes.

As you might imagine for a one-man band, the tracks are musically quite bare, although what that gives it is a desolate eccentricity that is somehow very infectious. Opening track Yammer Yammer, is a stripped down blues jaunt. There’s a similar vein on Memories That Linger, where he presents a unique take on Catch A Falling Star (which must be out of copyright!). Elsewhere it’s more about dreamy guitar pop, although the closing two tracks drift more into a folkier dominion, giving off a very sixties feeling. There’s something endearing about the performance too and makes for this being a very enjoyable listen.

A wonderful ep that encapsulates the diy, casio musings of snye, sublime boy/girl vocal harmonies from Mammoth Life, tongue in cheek lyrical attacks on the “scene” from Electric Needle Room and the pop, romp, glam, stomp of Your Elders. Indie music is one dimensional?  Not here it isn’t!

Zipper

Hyperbubble

Lean Tales

Starshy

Various Artists