How appropriate that this should appear on the Elefant label, for, unlike Elephant, this really does seem to be the sort of record we’d have preferred to emerge from an idealised 1963. Very much in the Belle & Sebastian mode, with three vocalists (two female, one male), this is revitalising indie-pop. Hear your heart break at the Joe Meek soprano who wanders in halfway through “Teenager”. Wonder why no Britpoppers could do Northern Soul as effortlessly and brilliantly as “Let Me Go Home”. The closing chorus of “I’ll keep you safe and warm tonight” on “Knee Deep At The NPL” might be the most touching moment in any pop this year.
Advertisement